(BEIJING, March 18) -- On the first day of the "Good Luck Beijing" 2008 Water Polo China Open held at Beijing's Ying Tung Natatorium, traditional powerhouses Australia and the United States clinched comfortable wins over China and Russia, respectively, in the women's preliminaries.In the opening game between Olympic champion Australia and host China, except for a 1-1 draw in the first period, Australia maintained its lead by three goals or more throughout the match, gaining the upper hand over China in both success rate of attacks and play-making. After the match, China's head coach Juan Jane Giralt admitted that the Chinese players still had a long way to go before catching up with their Australian counterparts.The second match saw Russia pitted against the 2000 Olympic runner-up, the United States. The Russians led 6-3 after the second period but suffered unexpected setback in the rest of the game, losing by a wide margin, 15-9.Judging by the first-day competitions, the gap between the traditionally strong teams and the second-string teams has narrowed, and the European teams, headed by Russia, are catching up with the world's top teams. A newcomer to the sport, China has made remarkable progress in recent years. Since women's water polo became an official Olympic event in 2000, more and more teams have come to the fore to vie for top honors in the sport.The men's preliminaries of the 2008 Water Polo China Open will begin on March 20.(Credit: The Official Website of "Good Luck Beijing" Sport Events)
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