Special report:   2008 Olympic Games

    By Sportswriter Liang Xiyi

    BEIJING, July 20 (Xinhua) -- Defending champions U.S. women's basketball team will meet a strong challenge headed by Australia and Russia when they are vying for a fourth consecutive Olympic gold in Beijing on August.

    "We know it will not be an easy road to the gold medal in Beijing, the rest of the world has gotten much better over the last four years," said Renee Brown, USA Basketball vice president for senior women and chair of the selection committee.

    The Americans have collected a record five gold medals, one silver and one bronze medal, and compiled a 42-3 overall record in seven Olympic appearances (they boycotted the 1980 Olympics) since women's basketball was officially introduced at the 1976 Olympic Games.

    However, it has become more and more difficult for the US women's team to win the gold medals over the past three Olympics.

    In 1996, The Americans beat Brazil with a 111-87 victory for the title following an easy road to the final. In 2000, the winning was not as easy as four years ago, but the red, white and blue still managed to defeat South Korea in the semifinals 78-65, and the hosts Australia in the final 76-54.

    At the 2004 Athens Olympics, the United States narrowly edged Russia with a 66-62 win in the semifinals. While in the final, the USA women suffered a stronger challenge from Australia in the first half, where they only built a three-point (29-26) lead before making it 74-63 for the gold medal.

    Moreover, the USA fell short of their golden dream in the 2006 World Championship for women in Brazil when they were beaten by Russia in the semifinal and forced to settle for bronze.

    It was a depression indeed but not a comedown for women's basketball in the United States. It has shown that women's basketball in the rest of the world has been improving, especially in Russia.

    The Russian women returned to the Olympic podium in 2004 with bronze since Com. Independent States won gold in Barcelona in 1992. After that Russia went on to snatch silver at the 2006 Worlds and also won the 2007 European Championship by beating Spain with a strong defensive and rebounding performance at the gold medal game.

    Considered as one of the best teams in international basketball, the Russian women are trying to name three American natives in their squad to compete in the Olympics.

    Of the three, Becky Hammon, an ex-WNBA star, has gained Russian citizenship because she spent this season at the CSKA Moscow.

    U.S team head coach Anne Donovan questioned the patriotism of Hammon, saying "If you play in this country, live in this country and you grow up in the heartland and you put on a Russian uniform, you are not a patriotic person in my mind."

    China coach Tom Maher also questioned Russia's logic. "It's ridiculous how many good players the Russians have got," Maher said. "Maybe that might make them stronger."

    Hammon, meanwhile, has insisted she just wants to play at the Olympics. However, whether she and her two other fellow Americans can participate in the Olympics with a Russian uniform have to be decided by FIBA, the world basketball governing body.

    Perhaps the most dangerous opponent to the United States is Australia. The team has been on a surge since 2006 when Penny Taylor and Lauren Jackson led the talented Opals to the world title after they fought back against Brazil in the semifinal to reach the final, and then won convincingly over Russia. Taylor was named the Most Important Play of the final.

    "The strongest Australian women's basketball team ever has been assembled for the 2008 Olympic Games," said the Australian Basketball Federation. "The world champions have the firepower to topple the United States."

    Jackson, Taylor, Belinda Snell, Suzy Batkovic and Lausa Summerton are the six players in the Australian squad that have played in an Olympics before, while 28-year-old Rohanee Cox, a powerful 1.82m forward, will compete in her first major tournament with the Opals.

    "The team is even better than the one we took to the World Championship," said Australian head coach Jan Stirling. "Since winning gold in Brazil, the players have been steadily improving and with the addition of Cox we are going to be really strong."

    The US team is prepared to put all their eggs in one basket after it seriously selected out the 12-member team to go mining for gold medal in Beijing.

    The team features seven Olympians, including three-time Olympic gold medalist Lisa Leslie (Los Angeles Sparks) and two-time Olympic gold medalist Katie Smith (Detroit Shock), as well as 1.93m Candace Parker, No. 1 pick overall of 2008 WNBA draft by the Los Angeles Sparks and the first female dunker in NCAA basketball when she played for the University of Tennessee, and 1. 98m center Sylvia Fowles, No. 2 draft in 2008 by the Chicago Sky.

    "I'm just thrilled to have these players. It's such a great mixture of Olympic gold medalists with some really tremendous young talent," Donovan said.

    The US women will play in Group B against China, Spain, the Czech Republic, Mali and New Zealand, while Group A features Australia, Russia, Brazil, Belarus, Latvia and South Korea.

    The hosts China have their eyes set on a medal but their path to the target will be anything but easy.

    Apparently beneath the United States, Australia and Russia, China, Spain, the Czech, Brazil, Belarus and Latvia are the same level. And they can beat or lose to each other.

    Both Belarus and Latvia reach the Olympics for the first time.