Women's cycling: Guo Shuang carries weight

Guo Shuang's performance in London will affect the overall results of the Chinese women's cycling team.

Even though it is known as a nation of bicyclers, China has never won a gold medal in Olympic cycling. Jiang Cuihua and Jiang Yonghua won the bronze and the silver of the 500-meter speed cycling race respectively in Sydney and Athens. Inner Mongolia-born Guo Shuang once won the bronze for the the women's field sprint in the 2008 Beijing Games.

In 2009, the International Cycling Union added events to Olympic Track Cycling. In addition to the women's field sprint, team racing and women's Keirin were added. To enhance the competitiveness of the three items, China employed Frenchman Daniel Morelon as the head coach of the women's cycling team. Finally, Chinese cyclers Guo Shuang, Gong Jinjie and Lin Junhong qualified for London.

26-year-old Guo Shuang, the core of the Chinese women's cycling delegation, has had rather unstable performance recently. In the 2012 World Championships, Guo lost to Britain's Victoria Pendleton and Australia's Anna Meares, with China only winning the bronze for the team race. Guo's performance in London will affect the overall results of the Chinese women's cycling team.

Synchronized swimming: China vs. Russia

Japanese coach Imura Masayo hopes to lead the Chinese swimming team to the gold medal in London this year.

Under the guidance of the Japanese coach Imura Masayo, Chinese synchronized swimmers won the bronze medal as a team and the fourth in the double event in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the team's best performance in history. In the 2011 World Championships, the Chinese team also won six silvers and one bronze, boasting a runner-up finish in two Olympic items.

Imura Masayo, the 'mother' of Japanese synchronized swimming, led the Japanese team to Olympics from 1984 to 2004, six times in total. In 2000 and 2004, Japan won two silvers in the double and the collective items, second to Russia. After being recruited by China, she hopes to lead the Chinese swimming team to the gold medal in London this year.

Russia presently boasts the strongest synchronized swimming team in the world. The Chinese double swimmers Huang Xuechen and Liu Ou will issue their challenge to the Russian team in London.