HARBIN, 4 October 2003 — China’s trail-blazing basketball team will have an entire continent in their corner when they represent Asia at the Athens Olympics next year. China waltzed through the Asian Basketball Championships this week, winning seven of their eight games by at least 24 points, while beating rival South Korea 106-96 in Wednesday’s final, their toughest game of the championships.

With that win, China has now won 13 of the last 15 ABC crowns and will be the region’s sole representative at next year’s Olympics. “I’ve talked to them and told them I hope that when they reach the Olympic Games they can do a better job than they did at last year’s World Championships,” Saud Ali Al-Thani, president of the International Basketball Federation-Asia (FIBA-Asia) said.

“Their results will help Asia, if China can get sixth place (in the Olympics) this will be very good.” China finished a miserable 12th place at the 2002 World Championships in the United States, despite boasting two NBA centers, Houston Rockets sensation Yao Ming and Menk Bateer, who last year played for NBA champions San Antonio Spurs.

Due to its long-time weakness, Asia is only given one spot in the 12-team Olympic basketball finals, but by placing at least sixth in Athens, China would increase the berths reserved for Asia to two.

Such a finish would give Asia three openings in the 2008 Beijing Olympics as China would automatically qualify as host.

However, many believe such a finish would be next to impossible, despite China’s best-ever eighth place finish at the 1998 World Championships. “It will be really hard for China to get a sixth place finish at the Athens Games,” Zeljko Pavlicevic, Japan’s Croatian basketball coach said.

“A sixth place finish will mean that they are going to have to beat at least one top tier team, and for China, despite Yao Ming, that is going to be very difficult.”

Besides Yao, who averaged 22.6 points, 13 rebounds and 2.7 blocks a game in eight games in Harbin, only sharp shooting forward Li Nan is capable of competing with top American and European-level players, he said. Even if Wang Zhizhi, China’s third NBA player and one third of the famed ‘Walking Great Wall’ of seven foot (2.13 meter) Chinese centers, were allowed to return to the national team, it would still be difficult to finish higher than eight at the Olympics, Syrian coach Patrick Aleek said.

“The present team is probably China’s best ever team, but even if Wang Zhizhi plays for them it will still be difficult to beat the American or European teams because China still lacks size and speed at the other positions,” Aleek said.

Bryant’s Accuser Won’t

Have to Testify at Hearing

In Denver, the woman accusing Kobe Bryant of sexual assault won’t have to testify next week at the basketball star’s preliminary hearing, which will be open to the public, a Colorado judge ruled Thursday.

Eagle County Judge Frederick Gannett denied two requests by Bryant’s legal team, quashing a subpoena Bryant’s lawyers issued to the 19-year-old woman and turning down a bid to close next Thursday’s hearing.

Unless Bryant waives his right to the preliminary hearing, Gannett will decide then whether there is enough evidence to set a trial date. The 25-year-old Los Angeles Lakers guard is charged with sexually assaulting the woman on June 30 at a mountain resort where he was a guest and she was an employee.

He faces up to life in jail if convicted on the felony charge, which in Colorado is equivalent to rape. Bryant, who is free on $25,000 bail, has strongly denied the allegations of rape, saying they had consensual sex.

Both the woman’s lawyer and Eagle County District Attorney Mark Hurlbert opposed her testimony at the preliminary hearing, saying it would cause her anxiety and prove intimidating to her.

But Gannett said he was persuaded by the proof prosecutors have produced, including testimony from law enforcement officers and photos of her alleged injuries.

That, he said, will be enough to allow him to make a decision on whether the case should go forward. Bryant’s lawyers, Hal Haddon and Pamela Mackey of Denver, also wanted the preliminary hearing closed, but Gannett said he didn’t believe its being public would adversely affect Bryant’s right to a fair trial.

However, he did schedule a meeting with lawyers from both sides on Thursday, 45 minutes before the preliminary hearing, to determine if a portion of the proceedings should be closed.

Also Thursday, Gannett deferred a decision to a higher court on whether the woman’s medical records may be seen by Bryant’s legal team.