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Unus Alladin

Eight years ago, she was the darling of the Chinese volleyball team, happy to soak up the experience. Now she's the team's most senior member, carrying responsibility on her broad shoulders.

 The task of leading her team to the Sydney Olympics has been thrust on her - but she's not afraid of the challenge.

 Sun Yue, China's star spiker and captain, will be competing in her third Olympics after appearances in Barcelona and Atlanta. But Sydney is going to be different - a whole lot different.

 Head coach Lang Ping, who guided the team to the silver medal at the Atlanta Olympics, has left the team for Italy; former captain Lai Yawen - the team's most experienced player - has traded her skills to become China's new trainer; while a crop of youngsters have emerged looking for guidance.

 The game has also evolved to such an extent that upsets are not uncommon. Teams vie for 25 points as opposed to 15 points in each set.

 But some things haven't changed. The Chinese team still face an out-moded administration which refuses to move with the times.

 Sun sought permission to play professionally in Italy, but her request was flatly turned down.

 'I suppose the Chinese team couldn't afford me to leave. I was very disappointed that I couldn't go to Italy to join Lang Ping,' said Sun, relaxing at the Miramar Hotel after a two-hour workout session during last week's Asian Women's Championship.

 'The Chinese Volleyball Federation feared that if I left, it would affect the whole team for Sydney. They also worried that I might get injured in Italy,' she said.

 The Chinese team have become barely recognisable since losing to world champions Cuba for the gold medal in Atlanta. But then there's Sun, the beacon of China's new-look team.

 As the most experienced player, Sun has been thrown into a role she is not familiar with, but then again, she knew the day would come when she would have to captain one of the world's top women's volleyball teams.

 'There is always pressure. I have to keep it in the back of my mind that I am no longer the youngster who first appeared in the team.

 'I know I have the responsibility of leading the younger members in Sydney. It is something I have to do,' said 26-year-old Sun, one of the world's most formidable spikers.

 'In 1992, I was the new kid on the block in Barcelona. In 1996, I had the experience of one Olympics behind me and now I am going to Sydney as a veteran. I have become more and more mature.

 'I have been playing with the national team for eight years and it has ruled my life since I joined them as an 18-year-old.

 'Our first real test is the World Cup in Japan next month followed by the World Championship in November [in Japan]. Sydney will be our ultimate test,' she said.

 'Fortunately, I will have a few other experienced members who I hope will pull us through in Sydney. Teammates like Wu Yongmei and He Qi have big-match experience and will help out as well. The responsibility is not solely on me.'  Sun also knows how to deal with the the media better after being branded 'snobbish' when she first appeared in Hong Kong as a youngster in a tournament here seven years ago.

 She has come of age, speaking to the press with the confidence and grace of a seasoned campaigner and there are no signs of the immaturity of previous years.

 Born in Jiangsu into a family of naturally gifted athletes, Sun towers at 1.86 metres.

 Her father had been a setter, then coach, of the Jiangsu provincial men's volleyball team, while her mother was for many years a strong offensive player for the women's team.

 Sun excelled in athletics at age 10 but gradually turned her attention to volleyball when her ability and height caught the attention of Sun Honxian, volleyball coach at the Qutaishan amateur sports school in Nanjin.

 At 19, Sun was already part of China's team in Barcelona, but the experience turned out to be a disaster after China finished a dismal seventh - a shocking result considering they had won gold in Los Angeles eight years earlier.

 China rebuilt after that debacle and, thanks largely to Sun's contribution to the team, came back from also-rans to world beaters once again.

 Sun's introduction to the national team is a unique case in the history of Chinese volleyball.

 No other woman player had been called up to the national team without having previously acquired experience at junior or provincial level.

 Ex-China coach Hu Jin spotted the precocious talents of Sun and immediately put her in the team.

 Eight months later, she found herself on the Olympic stage in Barcelona.

 Sun said times had changed from when China used to rule the roost with a series of commanding performances that made them the world's top team in the early 1980s.

 'Now teams have become stronger and many other nations like Italy, Holland and Croatia have made steady progress. Everybody is improving and China has to keep pace with these countries,' she said.

 Apart of the burden of looking after her team, Sun has also to look after herself more than ever before.

 A knee injury suffered in June during an exhibition match in Australia forced her out of the sport for three months - the longest she has been forced to remain on the sidelines since she started playing full-time.

 'I'm still in a bit of pain but the knee is holding up well. I have had no problems so far. I was able to play two matches without any problems,' said Sun.



Captain Sun rises to new challenge