Four years ago at the Athens Games, Wang Yifu took the world by surprise by winning the 10m air pistol event at the age of 44.

Now, China's veteran shooter aims to wow the world again at the upcoming Olympics in his role as head coach of the Chinese shooting team.

"Whether as an athlete or as a coach, what I am geared toward is winning glory for the country at the Olympics," said Wang, who has targeted four to five gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Games.

Wang made a number of reforms after taking over in 2006, including helping set up domestic trials to determine who deserves a place on the team.

"We will not take players' relationships with coaches or officials into consideration. If you cannot pass the domestic trials, you have no chance of making the squad," he said.

"Even if I wanted to compete in Beijing, I also would have to pass the domestic trials."

Wang is the only Chinese athlete who has taken part in six consecutive Games from 1984 to 2004. With two Olympic gold medals, three silvers and one bronze under his belt, he is one of China's most prolific shooters.

His long and successful sporting career motivated him to get involved in coaching.

"Thanks to my successful career, chief officials offered me this job. Their trust pushes me to pursue more success," he said.

"But, on the other hand, I have to deal with even more pressure and commitments."

Wang took up shooting at the age of 15 at a sports school in Liaoyang, Northeast China's Liaoning Province. He joined the provincial team in 1977 and, three years later, made it to the national squad.

"Personally speaking, I still want to compete in the Beijing Games, because it's a once-a-life-time chance to do so on home soil. But I have to take the overall interests of team and country into consideration. As head coach, I should focus on producing more gold medals for China. I consider this a bigger achievement and an honor."