"I hope the lifters could have a good performance in Doha. Ten gold medals are our minimum target, but we are looking forward to win more," said Ma Wenguang, President of the Chinese Weightlifting Association.

China, which also showed great power in the Olympics, took nine gold medals in the Busan Asian Games in 2002, with three from the men and six from the women.

"Most lifters have experiences here last year at the world championships, so they don't have to take time to get used to Doha's environment. Actually, Doha is our lucky place," he added.

China has been the biggest weightlifting winner in Asian Games history with 55 golds, 22 silvers and eight bronzes, followed by South Korea and Iran with 26 golds and 20 golds respectively.

"I almost forgot the feeling of winning an Asian gold, and I expect to review such feeling in Doha again," said Olympic champion Chen Yanqing, who clinched a gold medal in the 1998 Bangkok Asian Games.

The Chinese weightlifting team, with eight strongmen and seven women, arrived here on Tuesday to compete in 13 categories during the Asian Games.