Tong ready to start over again

Judoka hopes to put drug controversy behind her with gold medal on Friday

It doesn't matter that the beds are terrible in the Athletes' Village.

Tong Wen is sleeping just fine at night.

China's world champion judoka has left her doping ban behind and has her sights set on defending her Olympic gold medal on Friday in the +78kg event.

It's been a stuttering Olympic cycle for the nation's top judoka.

She tested positive for the fat-burning drug clenbuterol at the 2009 World Championships in Rotterdam, where she won the +78kg category title. She was banned for two years, and was schedule to be eligible to be reinstated in September 2011.

But in February 2011, her bid to overturn the ban was successful, and she was reinstated as world champ. The Court of Arbitration for Sport overturned the suspension imposed by the International Judo Federation, citing a "procedural failure" in the laboratory tests.

Tong returned to international competition in May 2011, winning gold at the Moscow Grand Slam, then the world championship in August.

All that winning couldn't shut out the criticism from those who questioned whether the ban should have been overturned.

Tong knows the best response is to win another gold medal.

"As a professional, what you should do is be focused on the preparations and competitions," she said. "I had a long and tough training before the Games, and I think it worked very well."

She's so well-prepared that she even managed to get control of that bedding situation.

"We thought it through and added something to make the bed longer and wider," the 29-year-old said. "It's not totally suitable, but it's OK for me. I'm used to the beds in Europe. I sleep well and am in great shape right now."

Tong opens her defense against Vanessa Zambotti of Mexico. Her top rival and most likely opponent in the final is Japan's Mika Sugimoto. Sugimoto won the World Championship, Asian Championship and Asian Games in Tong's absence in 2010.

Tong's coach, Wu Weifeng, said Tong is ready to go.

"She is in good shape. Our tactic is to go forward and keep aggressive. Winning judo gold is not walking over there and taking it," Wu said. "We will not use conservative or defensive tactics.

"Lots of world champions have been eliminated in other categories. In the 52kg, none of the world's top six women made it. New faces rose and are competitive.

"We have to prepare for every round to be difficult, but we must have confidence that Tong is able to beat everyone."

Wu said Tong feels pressure but not fear.

"People have their eyes on her because she is a strong opponent and a favorite in the event. We have the confidence necessary to deal with that pressure."

Tong broke out when she was 17, winning the Asian Championship in 2000.

She made a name for herself on the international stage three years later, winning the World Open Championships title in 2003 in Osaka.

She defeated reigning champion Maki Tsukada with eight seconds to go in the heavyweight judo final at the Beijing Games, making her the first grand slam champion.

China has dominated women's judo in the +78kg category and open levels for a long time. Three Chinese judokas - Zhuang Xiaoyan in 1992, Sun Fuming in 1996 and Yuan Hua in 2000 - took gold in the Olympics.

Chinese women's judokas work with male training partners, so they are competitive in both strength and technique, combining traditional Chinese wrestling with judo.

In 2004, China had to settle for bronze, but Tong emerged to reclaim China's place atop the category.

chenxiangfeng@chinadaily.com.cn