China's women's volleyball team has a lot at stake with the Beijing Olympics just a few short months away.

Expectations for the defending Chinese champion and host team are high.

But, there are several strong contenders to mind as Italy, Russia, Cuba, US and Brazil, all continue to win world titles.

Italy perhaps boasts the largest threat to China's glory at the volleyball nets this summer at the Games.

They proved to be a force to be reckoned with after taking the title at the 2007 European Championships -- and before stepping on to the highest podium at the 2007 World Cup.

The Italian team was further strengthened in 2007 with the addition of former Cuban hitter Taismary Aguero. The Italian-born Cuban helped the Cuban team win gold at the 1996 and 2000 Olympic Games.

But, apart from Italy, China also needs to be cautious of the other top-ranked countries looking for nothing less than gold.

The Chinese will watch the Russian silver medalists of the 2004 Olympics in Athens closely in the coming months.

"En route to defending China's champion title at the Beijing Games, Russia and Italy are the main forces the Chinese team has to meet," says Ruben Acosta, president of the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB).

Brazil, currently the world's top women's volleyball team, also has its sights set on the gold. The team achieved nine wins and suffered only two losses at last year's world cup -- placing them second in the final ranking.

The US women's volleyball team has also made phenomenal strides in the past two years under the direction of coach and former Chinese Olympic women's volleyball icon Lang Ping.

"If the US team could ensure enough time for training together, they are also able to surprise the world at the Beijing Games," says Acosta.

Cuba, too, is also prepared for a tough fight ahead.

"We have the option for the gold in Beijing and we are certainly going after it," says Cuban team official Antonio Perdomo. "We, of course, don't train to lose and we will play to get the ultimate goal."

Of course, the Dutch -- an emerging contender -- cannot be ignored.

The Dutch women's volleyball team has been on the rise since taking the World Grand Prix Finals last August -- where they beat out all traditional powerhouses.

Still, it is difficult to predict who will come out on top in Beijing.

"Before the Olympic Games, it's not proper to judge the power of a team through the winning or losing of some matches," says Wei Jizhong, first vice-president of FIVB.

"At present, Russia, Italy and Brazil are still top teams, and it should be no problem for China to reach the semifinals. The World Grand Prix Finals in the coming July will be a good opportunity to closely watch those teams."

So far, China, Italy, Brazil, US, Russia, Cuba, Venezuela and Algeria, have all secured a spot to compete in the Beijing Games.

The four remaining spots will be known after the World Olympic Qualification Tournament later this month.

(China Daily 05/09/2008 page6)