Chinese fear Rathore may spoil their party

Doha, Nov 29 (UNI) China has zeroed in on shooter Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, fearing that the Indian marksman may spoil their party in the Asian Games here.

The Chinese consider Olympic silver medallist Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore as one who can stand between their plans of a clean sweep.

''Rathore is a very crafty shooter. He is very tough and can hold on to his nerves at crucial moments,'' said Chinese shooter Hu Binyuan.

Hu said he has no hesitation in tipping Rathore as his toughest opponent in the Doha Asian Games.

''Rathore is a dangerous opponent even though Ahmed Al Maktoum is not coming,'' said Hu, world runner-up in double trap.

''But in shooting, concentration is most important and I won't let my guard down,'' added Hu, who won a gold medal in the 1998 Asian Games in Bangkok.

Al Maktoum, 42, who won the first Olympic gold for United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the 2004 Athens Games, will not take part in the Asian Games starting Friday. He is a member of the ruling family of Dubai and was once the UAE national champion in squash.

''It is really a pity, because he is a great shooter. He didn't compete in international events this year,'' said Chinese head coach Sun Shengwei.

In the Busan Games four years ago, neither of China's three shooters made it to the podium in the men's double trap individual event and they were beaten to second place by South Korea in the team contest.

As many as 44 Gold medals are at stake in the shooting competition to be e held from Dec 2-8 at Lusial Shooting Complex.

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