MARCH 6 - CHINA will not be able to beat its gold medal tally from the Beijing Olympics at the London Games in 2012, the country's Deputy Sports Minister Cui Dalin (pictured) said today.

 

China finished top of the medals in Beijing for the first time in Olympic history with 51 gold medals.

 

But Cui told a sports advisory group in China's Parliament that he did not expect that total to be beaten in London.

 

He said: "We won 51 gold and total 100 medals to rank top at the Beijing Olympics, which was a historic breakthrough.

 

"After this great success, how Chinese competitive sports should develop in the future and what we should do for the London Olympics has become the question.

 

"Are we still able to simply pursue an increase in the gold medal number?

 

"Obviously, that's impossible and not pragmatic.

 

"We can't relax and rest on our previous achievements.

 

"We always have to focus on our defects."

 

Cui admitted that competing at home in Beijing had helped the total.

 

He said: "London is not Beijing, we are no longer competing on home soil."

 

Cui also disputed claims that China is now the most powerful country in the world when it comes to sport.

 

He said: "How could a country that wins zero gold medals in the 47 events of track and field be called a strong power in sports?

 

"How could a country with its football as bad as China's be called a strong power in sports?

 

"Our target for 2012 is to fight to improve the athletics, swimming and three big balls [football, basketball, volleyball] while maintaining a certain number of golds."

 

Zhou Jihong, the head coach of China's diving team, reflected Cui's pessimism over the chances of repeated dominance of strong sports like her own.

 

He said: "It would be extremely difficult for us to do in London the same as at the Beijing Games, as we already took seven of eight golds.

 

"Our competitors have been improving, and there are already many strong foreign divers that are able to challenge us."

 

Table tennis great Deng Yaping, another member of the sports advisory group, warned that China should not expect to be as successful in London.

 

He said: "I think it will be difficult for us to get 51 golds in London.

 

"But we'll work really hard to keep the gap between what we achieved in Beijing and what we win in London as small as possible."