Densham set to foil hosts

Densham must beat the favourite, Britain's Helen Jenkins, women's world champion in 2008 and 2011, on a flat course in London on Saturday, starting with a 1,500-metre swim in the Serpentine lake and finishing with a 10km run around Hyde Park.

After failing to finish two races on the international circuit, including being dragged from the water during the swim stage of one event, Densham was diagnosed as suffering from tachycardia, an irregular or accelerated heart beat.

The 27-year-old from New South Wales needed surgery just to ensure she could live a normal lifestyle, let alone resume the life of an elite competitor. But she has battled back to fitness in a sport that is one of the most physically demanding.

Ahead of the Olympics, Densham showed some of the best form of her career, including winning a race in Hamburg 10 days ago where she beat team mate Emma Moffatt, a former world champion and Olympic bronze medal winner in Beijing four years ago.

The swim in the Serpentine could be crucial on a course where the bike ride - over-length at 43km - will probably not allow anyone who does not emerge from the water in the leading group to close the gap before the decisive run.

With the cycle phase unlikely to have much impact on the outcome, some regard the London course as a "splash and dash" triathlon.

"The swim is going to play a big role," Densham said. "They have said before you can't win the race in the swim but you can definitely lose it. Honestly, there is no knowing how it's going to go but it's going to be hard and fast.

Germany's best hope Anne Haug, added: "I think the London race will be a very fast swim, maybe the fastest swim we've ever had."

The British team has included Lucy Hall in its three-woman squad as a sort of domestique in a swim suit, to help ensure Jenkins gets out of the Serpentine in the lead bunch.

Hall, at 20 the youngest in the 56-woman field, is such a noted swimmer that in France, where she races often, she is nicknamed "La Sirene" - The Mermaid.

However, Densham is unconcerned by the British tactics.

"That's within the rules and their prerogative," she told a news conference at Imperial College in South Kensington, London.

"They've obviously put all their eggs in one basket with Helen Jenkins but I'm not worried about it."

Other teams have also picked strong swimmers, with the United States selecting Gwen Jorgensen, a former collegiate swimmer, in their trio with Laura Bennett and Sarah Groff.

Such a course may not suit the likes of Switzerland's Nicola Spirig, who is not noted for her swimming ability.

But the three-time European champion, who is coached by controversial Australian Brett Sutton, has won on the course before and the 30-year-old's likely chase of the leaders on the seven-lap bike phase could be one of the features of the race.

Many pundits believe the women's event is wide open.

South Africa's Kate Roberts said: "I can assure you Kate Allen and Brigitte McMahon went into the Olympics and they certainly weren't the favourites, but they went in there and on the day everything fell into place and they won gold.

Australia's Allen was Olympic champion at Athens in 2004 while Switzerland's McMahon won gold at Sydney 2000.

"Anything can happen, you just have to make the most of it when opportunity comes and go for it," added Roberts, who is competing at her second Olympics.

This will be the fourth time triathlon has been staged at the Olympic Games, having made a spectacular debut in 2000.

Germany's Anja Dittmer, 36, will become the only woman to have competed at all four editions of the Olympic triathlon.