HONG KONG • As the 10th anniversary of the 2008 Beijing Olympics ticks by, China will seek to maintain its sporting pre-eminence at the Asian Games and top the medal table for a 10th time in succession.

Since New Delhi 1982, Chinese athletes have consistently outshone their regional rivals while setting new benchmarks.

Although they narrowly missed out on smashing the 200-gold barrier on home soil in Guangzhou in 2010, the 199 golds and 416 medals overall remain a Games best.

They may struggle to surpass those benchmarks but will expect to dominate as usual.

At Incheon four years ago, China claimed the largest medal hauls in athletics, cycling, diving, gymnastics, rowing, shooting, swimming, table tennis, weightlifting and wushu - finishing with 151 golds, 109 silvers and 85 bronzes.

This year, Su Bingtian is expected to lead China's charge on the track, after he twice ran 9.91sec in the 100m last month to match the Asian record he shares with Qatar's Femi Ogunode.

However, the nation's hopes have suffered a blow after fellow sprint star Xie Zhenye, who has also dipped under 10 seconds this season with a 9.97sec run, announced yesterday that he will not be competing because of an ankle injury.

The biggest share of the spotlight off the track will perhaps fall on swimmer Sun Yang.

The captain of China's national team arrived in Jakarta on Monday evening, and is taking part in this competition for the third time. The three-time Olympic champion is looking to add to his five continental golds.

"I will face a new challenge; the 800m freestyle has been added for the first time. I will be busier than ever," said the 27-year-old, who added he had trained in Singapore and Hong Kong in preparation for an expected schedule of 200m, 400m, 800m and 1,500m freestyle.

"I changed my training focus from short-mid distance to mid-long distance. That was a big change and I need more time to recover after every training session," he said. "The most important thing is to show my best and work out a suitable competition strategy. I am hungry for victory, not only in the Asian Games, but also the World Championships and Olympic Games."

In basketball, eight-time National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star Yao Ming has pushed many reforms aimed at bolstering the nation's prospects since he was elected chairman of the Chinese Basketball Association last year.

Jakarta will be the team's first big test and Zhou Qi, the only Chinese player who competed in the NBA last season for the Houston Rockets, is expected to provide both leadership and the offensive punch.

China's supremacy is, however, under threat in certain disciplines.

Japan and South Korea are closing the gap in table tennis while the Chinese have brought a relatively inexperienced team, leaving out multiple Olympic champions Ma Long, Xu Xin and Ding Ning.

"The Asiad is also a test for our young players to see if they can handle the pressure without top players like Ding Ning," women's head coach Li Sun told the China Daily.

While China is taking the Games seriously with regional pride at stake, officials have also been clear that they are looking ahead.

"These Asian Games function as a mid-term test and a valuable experience leading up to Tokyo 2020," Liu Guoyong, a senior official at the State General Administration of Sport, told Xinhua news agency.

The Chinese have a bulging squad of 845 competitors and are set to take part in every sport in Indonesia except weightlifting - due to a ban resulting from multiple doping violations - and kabaddi.

With an eye on 2020 and beyond, officials are also stressing the youthful nature of the table tennis team and the entire squad for the Games, which will be primarily used to blood new talent.

About three-quarters of the country's competitors have never been to an Olympics or Asiad before, according to Chinese state media.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS, CHINA DAILY/ASIA NEWS NETWORK