The Olympic delegation from Russia is composed of 847 members, including 467 athletes, 337 officials and others. Although players are selected from the whole country, a disproportionately large number of them are from large cities such as Moscow, which is home to 121 players on the team sent to Beijing. On July 29, the Kremlin hosted a grand ceremony for all members of the Olympic delegation. President Medvedev met with them and the pope of the Eastern Orthodox Church presided over a prayer for the delegation.

Vladimir Vasin, Chef de Mission of the Russian Olympic delegation predicted before the opening of the Beijing Games that Russian athletes would get about 30 gold medals in 10 to 15 events, including track and field, swimming, synchronized swimming, shooting, tennis and volleyball. He estimated their total medal tally would be around 80.

Yelena Isinbayeva, a polevaulter, is one of the most celebrated gold medal hopefuls in Russia. She won a gold medal in the 2004 Olympics with a new world record. Not long ago, she cleared a height of 5.04 meters, setting her 23rd world record. She was elected Female Athlete of the Year by the International Association of Athletics Federation in 2005, and Laureus World Sportswoman for the 2006 season. Laureus awards are given annually to outstanding athletes selected by experts primarily from the media in many countries.

Andrei Kirilenko, the flag carrier of the Russian Olympic delegation, is a flagship player. He is a professional basketball player currently playing for the Utah Jazz in the NBA. In 2007, he led the Russian men's basketball team and reclaimed the European championship. This team will be a strong contender for gold in Beijing.

In the past decade or so, Dmitri Sautin has been the only player that can make Chinese male divers nervous. Since his first appearance in international competition in 1991, Sautin has snatched two Olympic gold medals and six world championships. The 33-year-old Russian sportsman is set to push his career to a new height in Beijing and then retire.

Boxing and wresting are two gold mines for Russian teams. Makhach Murtazaliev, a leading wrestler in Russia, is a key gold digger. He was European champion in 2007, and was named among the top 10 Russian athletes in 2007. At this moment, nothing would interest him more than the title of an Olympic champion.

Russia has a strong competitive edge in synchronized swimming and rhythmic gymnastics as well. At the 2004 Games, two Russian swimmers, Anastasia Davydova and Anastasia Ermakova, won gold in duet synchronized swimming, and the pair also performed on the gold-winning Russian team. Ermakova, the two-time Olympic champion, believes the Russian team will reinforce their position this August in Beijing.

The author is with the Policy and Law Department of the State General Administration of Sport