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"We're long and tall people - maybe that's good for sprinting freestyle," Veldhuis said."As a little child I was sitting in front of the TV watching Pieter and Inge de Bruijn," Kromowidjojo said in an interview with The Associated Press."Now they're retired, but a few years ago I was training with them, so it was really nice and awesome to swim with your idols."Dutch head coach Jacco Verhaeren is the link between old and new generations, having coached van den Hoogenband for 15 years.In such a small country, however, it's difficult to excel in every discipline."If we can choose, we choose 50 and 100 freestyle and the relays," Verhaeren said.

Kromowidjojo is the Dutch team's budding star.She swept golds in the 50 and 100 free at the short-course worlds in Dubai in December for her first major international individual titles.She pronounces her name "just how you write it," as she likes to say."It was really serious, I was really ill," Kromowidjojo said."I didn't swim for seven weeks, but after I recovered really fast and two, three months later we had Europeans (short-course) and I had four gold medals and four weeks later we had worlds (short-course).It was amazing."

Meningitis is an infection of the lining that surrounds the brain and spinal cord, and at one point Kromowidjojo was wondering if she would ever swim again.

"Yes, everything is in your head.Maybe I cannot swim, maybe I cannot walk.You hear stories like people are deaf or cannot work anymore or nothing be the same as they were," she said.

Fortunately for Kromowidjojo, the illness left her with no disabilities.It did, perhaps, give her more motivation.

On her right wrist, Kromowidjojo has a tattoo featuring the Chinese character for water, the No.1 and the letter K for her relay gold in Beijing.She'll be looking to add another tattoo in Shanghai - and lead her teammates to gold in the relay.

Cielo hopes to have a chance to win gold here, too.The world title holder in the men's 50 and 100 freestyle, Cielo is awaiting a Court of Arbitration for Sport hearing after testing positive to a banned diuretic, furosemide.

Swimming's governing body FINA challenged a Brazilian federation decision to give Cielo and three teammates only a warning after testing positive in May.Cielo blamed his positive test on a contaminated batch of a food supplement he regularly used.

The hearing will begin Wednesday in Shanghai.A decision is expected by Friday, two days before the Sunday start of the eight-day pool swimming program.But after Sunday's 15th stage, won by sprinter Mark Cavendish, Voeckler brushed off suggestions he could become the first home winner since Bernard Hinault in 1985."I'll give it everything, but I'm not going to lie and say I can win it.I really believe I have zero chance of winning the Tour de France.

"It's not a question of not wanting to.Everybody would like to win the Tour.Since Bernard Hinault we're waiting for a (French) winner and since Richard Virenque a podium finisher.With Contador, the Schlecks and Evans expected to resume their yellow jersey battle in the Alps, Voeckler doesn't expect to benefit from ad hoc alliances."It's not like on the flat (stages) when you can get a bit of help (from other teams).In the mountains, that just doesn't exist.Your legs can either follow or they can't," he added,

"The fact you're keeping up with the best climbers on the Tour gives you a lot of motivation.But I know the Alps are coming up, and I'm expecting some difficult moments." AFP
News: Samuel Kohan, PhD, Psychoanalyst Video