Our 10 best medal chances at the London Olympics

2ST is your Official Olympic Radio network Partner and we are certainly excited about the prospects of some of Australia's Olympic Athlete's. Here are our Top 10 Medal chances when the hitting the ground in London. 

We'll have expert opinion and comments from some of the best whilst they are in London for the Olympic games, so don't miss a beat when the Olympic games start in just 15 days time.

1. SALLY PEARSON (100M HURDLES)

IT’S always fraught with danger to talk about the perfect preparation, but that’s exactly what Sally Pearson has enjoyed in the lead-up to the biggest race of her life.

Every box has been ticked from the moment she stamped herself as the one to beat in London by demolishing her rivals at the world championships in Daegu, South Korea, 10 months ago, winning the 100m hurdles gold medal in 12.28sec – the fourth fastest time in history.

THE DANGER: The two biggest threats are from the USA - Dawn Harper, the reigning Olympic champion, and Lolo Jones.

WHEN: Heats - Monday August 6; Semi-finals, Final - Tuesday August 7

2. JAMES MAGNUSSEN (100M SWIMMING)

IF James Magnussen was a cricketer or footballer, we would probably think the bloke was full of himself.

He tells his opposition in the 100m freestyle to brace themselves about what to expect at London. He doesn’t talk about winning gold, but the certainty of it. He talks about breaking the world record of 46.91secs set by Brazilian arch rival Cesar Cielo like it’s a fait accompli.

‘‘That’s how close I am,’’ he says, clicking his fingers.

THE DANGER: Fellow Australian James Roberts.

WHEN: Semi-finals - Tuesday July 31; Final - Wednesday August 1.

3. KOOKABURRAS (MEN'S HOCKEY)

IN the four years since the appointment of arguably our best sporting coach, Ric Charlesworth, the Kookaburras’ trophy cabinet has featured more silverware than a MasterChef kitchen.

A World Cup win in 2010, Champions Trophy wins in 2010 and 2011, and a Commonwealth Games gold medal in 2010 are among the highlights.

The Kookaburras have bulldozed their way to the No.1 ranking and are favourites to win gold in London.

THE DANGER: Traditional powerhouse Germany.

WHEN: Men’s final - Saturday August 11

4. 470 SAILING (TWO-MAN DINGHY) MALCOLM PAGE AND MATHEW BELCHER

AT the age of 40, Australian sailing team’s Malcolm Page is 32 years younger than the oldest ever Olympian but the 470 yachting gold medallist from 2008 has one more goal before he calls it a day from the dinghy.

Page was 36 when he and Nathan Wilmot claimed gold at the Beijing Games’ Qingdao sailing venue.

But after the Page/Wilmot eight-year partnership ended, Mathew Belcher jumped on board to give the veteran sailor a new lease of life on the water. They are now settled in the Games sailing venue Weymouth and Portland with a record third consecutive 470 World Champion title in Barcelona under their belt.

THE DANGERS: Britain, France, Israel and Croatia.

WHEN: Medal race - Thursday August 9

5. 4 X 100M FREESTYLE RELAY SWIMMING

HAVING watched the US consign Australia to silver at Beijing four years ago, James Magnussen, James Roberts, Eamon Sullivan and Matt Targett have the responsibility of taking it back.

In Magnussen and Roberts, Australia has the two fastest swimmers in the world at the moment. And Australia is the reigning world champion in the event.

And Magnussen is already salivating at the prospect of leading off against the greatest swimmer of all time, USA’s Michael Phelps.

THE DANGER: Team USA.

WHEN: Sunday July 29

6. MITCHELL WATT (LONG JUMP)

THE scary thing about Mitch Watt is that we really haven’t seen the best of him.

Apart from the fact he hasn’t been in the game that long, the Australian long-jumper managed to win the silver medal at last year’s world championships restricted by an achilles injury.

This lends itself to the theory that if Watt, 24, makes it to London in one piece, the Olympic gold medal is his for the taking.

THE DANGERS: American Dwight Phillips, South African Godfrey Khotso Mokoena.

WHEN: Qualification - Friday August 3; Final - Saturday August 4

7. 4 X 200M FREESTYLE RELAY

THEY were Australia’s shock gold medal of the Beijing Olympics, but now the women’s 4x200m freestyle relay team stand as our country’s best hope at back-to-back swimming success in London.

Kylie Palmer was the baby of the 2008 team, but after winning the individual 200m silver medal at last year’s world titles she is confident.

In 2008, the Australian team of Stephanie Rice, Bronte Barratt, Palmer and Linda MacKenzie were rank outsiders who upset the USA.

The top two in the country, Palmer and Barratt, are virtually assured of a position in the final.

Rice would need to be in top form given sprinter Melanie Schlanger and teenage rookie Brittany Elmslie currently fill out our four fastest women this year.

THE DANGER: World champions the USA.

WHEN: Final - Wednesday August 1

8. SAM WILLOUGHBY (MEN’S BMX)

IT took Sam Willoughby precisely 25.923 seconds to win the BMX world championships in Birmingham last May.

In truth, the journey that has the South Australian on target for Olympic Games stardom took much longer — 17 years, in fact.

Willoughby, 20, first raced a BMX bike when he was only three. By his own admission, it was a tempestuous start to a career that has given him three world crowns (one senior, two junior) and a world No.2 ranking.

The articulate Willoughby, based largely in the US, is now one of the most marketable commodities in the sport of BMX.

THE DANGER: Reigning Olympic champion Maris Strombergs of Latvia is the rider to beat.

WHEN: Semi-finals, Final - Wednesday August 1

9. TOM SLINGSBY (LASER SAILING)

AUSTRALIAN Laser sailor Tom Slingsby says mother nature is the biggest threat to him winning gold in the London Olympics.

After winning his fifth world championship in Germany in May, Slingsby firmed as favourite for the ultimate prize when he sets sail on July 30 at Weymouth and Portland, 200km south of London.

THE DANGERS: Kiwi Andrew Murdoch, Croatian Tonci Stipanovic and Briton Paul Goodison.

WHEN: Medal race - Monday August 6

10. SCOTT BRENNAN, DAVID CRAWSHAY (DOUBLE SCULLS)

WHEN gold medallist Scott Brennan recalls his early steps back up the Olympic mountain after a two-year break he thinks of one word — pain.

Brennan and his rowing partner David Crawshay will unite in London to defend the double sculls gold they won so brilliantly in Beijing.

They had a memorable month-long celebration and Brennan still smiles at the thought of their victory party as his partner sang Sinead O’Connor’s Nothing Compares 2 U in rousing falsetto.

The Crawshay-Brennan win in Beijing was especially emotional as it followed a meltdown at Athens 2004 which prompted Brennan to give a note to team captain Simon Burgess. It read: “When I race again, I’m not here to win, I’m here to wipe the floor.”

THE DANGERS: Kiwis Nathan Cohen and Joseph Sullivan

WHEN: Final - Tuesday August 2

Words courtesy of The Daily Telegraph.