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Kevin Lee

Name: Zheng Jie
Date of Birth: July 5, 1983 in Sichuan

Olympic entry: women's doubles (tennis)

Career highlights: Won women's doubles at the Australian Open and Wimbledon in 2006.

Name: Yan Zi

Date of Birth: November 12, 1984 in Sichuan

It was a sweltering summer evening in Sichuan province on July 5, 1992. But inside a girls' dormitory at Chengdu Amateur Sports School, there were more pressing matters at hand than the weather. Birthday girl and tennis prospect Zheng Jie had just turned nine, and she was desperate to disclose her birthday wish to her room-mates: 'I want to win a gold medal [at the Olympics].'

In Olympics-obsessed China nowadays it would hardly be a surprising ambition. But nine years before Beijing was even awarded the right to host the 2008 Games, and at a time when tennis was still considered a luxury sport representing a western-oriented lifestyle, it must have sounded ridiculous.

Fast forward 16 years. Tennis has evolved into one of the most popular sports on the mainland and Zheng - with fellow-Sichuanese Yan Zi - is closer to her childhood dream than she might have ever imagined. 

'No matter how many titles I won on the WTA Tour, the Olympics is my number one target,' said Zheng after leading China to the Fed Cup semi-finals in Beijing in February. 'Nothing can be compared with standing on the Olympic tennis court and competing for my country. I have been dreaming about it for years.'

Zheng and Yan have played together since childhood, blazing a trail in a sport previously dominated by Europeans, Americans and Australians.

 They've won 13 WTA doubles titles, the pinnacle coming in 2006 when they won both the Australian Open and Wimbledon. They were ranked world number four in 2006, and in 2007 they won US$1.8 million - behind only Yao Ming and Liu Xiang.

'We have been through a lot of tough times over the past four years,' said Yan. 'There were no experienced players to learn from. We couldn't follow overseas players [on TV], and also the language barrier was a big problem for us.

'But we managed to tough it out, and now we've become stronger mentally and technically.'
 Now, Zheng and Yan, along with top singles prospect Li Na, find themselves in the public spotlight and labelled Beijing medal prospects.

'They are the kind of players you can expect a lot from,' said national team head coach Jiang Hongwei. 'Unlike Chinese table tennis or volleyball players, Zheng and Yan are playing a western game so there are huge challenges ahead of them.

'But I am very happy to see they are so smart and are willing to think ... that's why they've been able to achieve so much so quickly.' 

It hasn't been all plain sailing, however. After their 'major' triumphs in 2006, the duo struggled for form.

Then in May 2007 disaster struck. Zheng broke her ankle, sidelining her for six months and potentially sending the duo sliding down the rankings and out of medal contention. 

'I realised how much I loved tennis after the injury,' said Zheng, who lost to Serena Williams in this year's Wimbledon singles semi-finals. 'I missed Yan very much when I was in hospital. Now win or lose, I enjoy every single second playing with her.'

In January this year the pair made a triumphant return and they once again look like serious medal contenders.

 'They will be the most dangerous pair at the Olympics, for sure,' said doubles specialist Virginia Ruano Pascual, of Spain. 'You didn't see any Chinese players on tour, but then, all of a sudden, there were five or six of them. They work really, really hard and are already a force - like the Russians a couple of years ago.'




No 13: Zheng Jie & Yan Zi