8 internationals worth watching

Household names in their own countries, these athletes will be high-profile in Beijing

Here are eight international athletes to watch at the Beijing Olympics.

1- Lin Dan, China

BADMINTON

The subject of awe for his skills and scorn for his tantrums, Lin has one of the most recognizable faces in China -- aside from Mao, that is. The "bad boy of badminton" is the two-time defending world champion. Often compared to John McEnroe for his temper on court, he breaks racquets, argues with linesmen and yells at himself. His girlfriend, Xie Xingfang, is the No. 1 women's player. They are a popular celebrity couple in China, along with diver Guo Jingjing and beau Kenneth Fok, playboy grandson of a Hong Kong tycoon.

2- Natalie du Toit, South Africa

OPEN WATER SWIMMING

She became the first amputee to qualify for the Olympics when she finished fourth at the world championships, 5.1 seconds behind the winner. The open-water 10K (6.2 miles) event makes its Olympic debut in Beijing. Du Toit, 24, won five gold medals at the 2004 Paralympics. She almost made South Africa's Olympic team in 2000, and then in 2001 her left leg was amputated at the knee after she was hit by a car while riding her scooter home from practice. She swims without a prosthetic leg.

3- Asafa Powell, Jamaica

TRACK AND FIELD

He was the world's fastest man until countryman Usain Bolt broke his world record with a time of 9.72 seconds in the 100 meters on May 31. Can Powell reclaim his crown at the Olympics after dominating the glamour sprint since 2004? Expect a showdown involving Powell, Bolt and American Tyson Gay. Powell has never won gold at a major competition; Beijing is his big chance. He finished third at the 2007 world championships after admitting he "panicked" when Gay pulled even with him. He set the world record of 9.74 seconds a month later to make up for the disappointment. Soft-spoken Powell, 25, grew up in Linstead, Jamaica, one of six sons of pastors. Unlike Ben Johnson, Donovan Bailey, Linford Christie and Merlene Ottey, he has remained in Jamaica, where he trains on an old grass track under coach Stephen Francis. He is inspired by the memory of two brothers who died young, one shot by a mugger, the other struck by a heart attack.

4- Liu Xiang, China

TRACK AND FIELD

By winning gold in the 110-meter hurdles at the Athens Games and setting the world record of 12.88 seconds in 2006, Xiang "proved to all the world that Asians can run very fast," he said. The Communist Party member and Shanghai native, only child of a truck driver and a waitress, was China's first Olympic gold medalist in a track and field event. He's a big celebrity in China, where he endorses Coca-Cola, Nike and Visa. Xiang, whose world record was shaved by .01 second by Cuba's Dayron Robles in June, will be under pressure to defend his 2004 gold and make up for a comparatively poor season so far.

5- Grant Hackett, Australia

SWIMMING

He's going after history, trying to become the first swimmer to win three gold medals in the 1,500 meters, the metric mile of the pool. He would equal Aussie Dawn Fraser's record of three consecutive Olympic swimming titles in the same event. At the 2004 Athens Games, Hackett won his signature event despite preparation that was interrupted by pneumonia and a collapsed lung.

6- Tom Daley, Great Britain

DIVING

He will be portrayed as the "little brother" of the Olympics. Just 14 years old, and only 5 feet, 2 inches tall and 105 pounds, Daley has created a sensation in diving and in his home country, where he's projected to be the star of the 2012 London Games. The Plymouth prodigy, ranked sixth worldwide in the 10-meter platform event, became the youngest diver to win a European title in March. He will be the youngest British Olympian since a 13-year-old coxswain made the rowing team in 1960.

7- Ronaldinho, Brazil

SOCCER

The Olympics should be in for a treat, as Ronaldinho, the former world and European player of the year, plans to play for his native Brazil in Beijing. The forward with the magical feet recently signed with AC Milan in a deal worth $33.4 million.

8- Vanessa Ferrari, Italy

GYMNASTICS

Ferrari, the 2007 European all-around and floor exercise champion and the 2006 world all-around champion, could be the wild card against the favored Americans, Chinese and Romanians in Beijing. Ferrari fell from the balance beam but came back with a spectacular floor routine to take the gold medal in a controversial finish ahead of American Jana Bieger at worlds in 2006. Ferrari, 17, has an Italian father, Bulgarian mother and twin brothers.