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Chilly reception worries Pedroso
SYDNEY, Sept 13 (AFP) - World champion long jumper Ivan Pedroso said Wednesday that the Sydney cold could hamper his bid to add Olympic gold to his global crown. Much attention has surrounded the windy conditions that are likely to complicate many events during the Sydney Games but Pedroso believes the springtime chill could be more disruptive. "The wind does not worry me but the cold does," Pedroso told AFP on landing at Sydney airport. "Here the climate will not help in trying to beat the world record. The cold is worrying me a lot and here the importance is to win." Pedroso, who jumped 8.65m on June 3 in Jena, Germany, does not have any high-profile opponents in the battle for Olympic gold but the Cuban refused to write off his opponents. "All of them are difficult to beat," he said, refusing to name his principal competitors. Pedroso, who arrived in Sydney Wednesday alongside 10 other Cubans including high jump legend Javier Sotomayor, was arriving after a competition in Yokohama, Japan where he posted 8.32m with his closest competitor James Beckford of Jamaica managing 8.12m. "The training, which is the most important, is going well," said Pedroso. "In Japan I had travelled a lot and I arrived a bit tired and I managed 8.32m. I only had four attempts. I pulled out of the other two to preserve myself and have arrived in good condition here at Sydney." Should Pedroso win gold he will dedicate the medal to his mother Teresa, who died earlier this year while he was competing in Europe.
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