The Chinese Olympic delegation gather at the Great Hall of The People in Beijing yesterday before leaving for London.

With some big stars coming back even as a new generation rises, China is hoping for major breakthroughs in track and swimming, and maybe some surprises in sports like judo, taekwondo, cycling and fencing. Compared with the niche sports it dominates - table tennis, badminton and diving - China is lagging behind opponents like the United States in athletics and swimming. It was limited to four gold medals in those sports at the past two Games.

China sees London as a perfect opportunity to extend its supremacy to mainstream sports. A group of athletes led by Olympic champion hurdler Liu Xiang and swimmers like Sun Yang are all in position to win gold.

China is backing up its ambitions with cash. It has hired foreign coaches, fitness trainers and performance analysts and sent athletes overseas to hone their skills.

The efforts have paid off. Liu recovered from a career-threatening injury, clocking top results at recent meets, and the swimming team bagged four titles at the World Championships last year.

Liu Peng, China's sports minister and Olympic delegation chief, thinks it might be time to make the leap.

"In some high-profile events (track and field and swimming), which are dominated by western countries, we have to try to make some breakthroughs and stun the world," Liu said at the delegation announcement ceremony on Tuesday.

Sebastian Coe, chairman of London's organizing committee, agreed.

"Look at the way the Chinese have ranged far wider than some of their staple sports like gymnastics," Coe said earlier this year.

"They have strength in many fields like in the pool, and athletics. It's going to be a truly global Games."

Still, other events will determine China's fate in the medal count.

The martial arts of boxing, judo, taekwondo and wrestling should be another gold mine for China, as fighters in the four events claimed six titles in Beijing.

Cyclists and fencers will be expected to provide a title from each side after they combined for one gold and one silver in Beijing, while the modern pentathlon squad will look to upgrade its World Championships silver to a gold medal in London.