BEIJING, July 29 (Xinhua) -- China gymnastics head coach Huang Yubin said on Tuesday that they had not considered the newly withdrawn U.S. gymnast Paul Hamm as a major contender in the Beijing Olympics.

    The reigning men's all-around Olympic champion was forced to withdraw from the U.S. Olympic team on Monday, failing to recover in time from a hand injury sustained in May.

    "I'm not surprised," said Huang, "We know he's injured. It would be very tough for a gymnast to recover in such a short time."

    "We feel sorry for him. It'll be painful for any athlete who has to quit the Olympics. But we will not consider his exit an advantage for us for neither he nor the United States team are our men's major contenders."

    "Our biggest opponents are still Japan," he added.

    In the Athens Games, Japan won the most coveted team's title and the silver medal went to the Americans while pre-Games favorites China finished only fifth after a row of big mistakes.

    The hosts are looking to a strong comeback on home turf with multiple world champion Yang Wei determined to win his first men's all-around Olympic title that he missed four years ago.