China will not enjoy any home advantage when the draw for the Olympic water polo competition is made on Saturday, officials said this week.
"If Chinese athletes are looking forward to an easier group for better results, they had better think again," Li Xiangdong, a senior official who oversees the sport in China, told reporters at a press conference last week. "The same rules apply to all teams."
Unlike certain Paralympic events like wheelchair basketball, where the host nation can choose its own group, Saturday's draw will be based purely on luck.
Water polo is one of nine Olympic events for which the groups will be decided by a draw. The Beijing Games will feature a total of 28 events.
The 12 men's and eight women's teams that have qualified for the water polo competition will be placed into one of two groups tomorrow at 10am at the Swissotel Beijing. The first round of the Olympic competition begins on August 10.
The draw will be conducted by FINA bureau member Guillermo Martinez and FINA TWPC Chairman Gianni Lonzi, said Li, who is the deputy director of the Water Polo and Synchronized Swimming Department of China Swimming Association. Representatives from all national teams will attend.
China's men's team is expected to struggle against the likes of European superpower Hungary, which has racked up eight gold medals in the men's competition since 1932.
But analysts say the women may have a better shot.
Team China has a chance to test the water this week at the ongoing "Good Luck Beijing" 2008 China Water Polo Open, a pre-Olympic test event, at the revamped Ying Tung Natatorium in Beijing. The United States, Australia and Russia are also competing.
