Australians to watch competing at the Tokyo Olympic Games

The competitors have spent the past five years training for this moment, their Olympic dream postponed by 12 months due to the coronavirus.

The delay has had a varying effect on those competing in Tokyo, with some seeing their preparations disrupted while others have benefited from an extra year of training.

Perhaps the biggest impact of the pandemic has been the lack of international competition, with a number of Australian athletes travelling to Japan without the usual race or match practice under their belt.

This can make it difficult to judge who the genuine favourites are in Tokyo, while it will also enable some to fly under the radar and shock their rivals.

As a result, there will be athletes who seemingly come from nowhere to capture the nation's imagination, with Australia's shooters and track cyclists spending the past year toiling away at home.

There are, however, some who will enter Tokyo with huge expectations, their performances in the past few months attracting the interest of spectators at home and abroad.

Swimming

For so long considered a relay specialist, the Illawarra talent has emerged as both an individual star and a gold-medal contender in the lead up to Tokyo.

The 12-month delay to the Games due to coronavirus has had varying effects on Australia's Olympic athletes, but for McKeon it's provided an additional year to fine-tune her preparations.

The 27-year-old will contest seven events in Tokyo, with all four relays genuine gold-medal contenders. The women's 4x100m freestyle team is the pick of the bunch, the side looking to win a third-straight Olympic title.

McKeon has long enjoyed relay success but it's individual glory that she's poised to achieve this year.

Competing in the 50m freestyle, 100m freestyle and 100m butterfly, the swimmer has swum the fastest time in the world this year in the two freestyle events and has overtaken Cate Campbell as Australia's top sprinter.

Joining McKeon in the search for gold in the pool are defending men's 100m freestyle champion Kyle Chalmers, 100m backstroke world record holder Kaylee McKeown and middle-distance star Ariarne Titmus.

The 20-year-old is set for two blockbuster clashes with American superstar Katie Ledecky, the pair to face off in the 200m and 400m freestyle events.

Tennis

The world No.1 will arrive in Tokyo riding the wave of a stunning Wimbledon victory.

There will no doubt be some question marks over Barty's health, with the 25-year-old battling a hip injury in the lead up to the English grand slam.

The Queenslander later revealed it was a two-month injury, however she claims to be pain free and expects to be in full health for the Games.

Should Barty prevail in Tokyo, she will become just the third Indigenous Australian to win Olympic gold. Nova Peris was the first to achieve the feat in Atlanta before Cathy Freeman's famous victory in the 400m final in Sydney.

Barty's task in Japan will not be easy, the athlete to come up against four-time grand slam winner Naomi Osaka.

The lack of fans will likely work in Barty's favour, however there's no doubt Osaka will be looking to do her home country proud by winning gold.

Just four women have won the Wimbledon-Olympics double, but the Australian is determined to do her best to be the fifth to achieve the feat

"I'll give it a crack, like everyone else will be, but I'll certainly be giving it my all," Barty told reporters after her win in London.

"I'm so excited to be a part of my first Olympic team and the Aussie team.

"We're 480-strong and to be a part of that for the first time in what will be the most unique Olympic Games ever will be awesome."

Hockey

Ranked No.1 in the world, the Kookaburras find themselves in a familiar position heading into the Tokyo Games.

Despite their dominance in the international arena over the past three decades, the side has struggled to win the colour they so desperately crave, gold.

The preparation for this year's Olympics has been vastly different to usual, with Australia isolated from much of the hockey world.

The Kookaburras flexed their muscle with six wins across two series with New Zealand, however they will face a stern task against Europe's best in Tokyo.

After a disappointing quarter-final exit in Rio, Australian star Blake Govers said the side is poised to break through in Tokyo.

"This team is in a great position," Govers said. "It's a new team, a young team that's full of energy.

"It's a different feel among the team, the coaching staff have put us in a good position to adapt to what the world is doing tactically rather than using brute force."

Canoe Slalom

Fox is another athlete desperate to turn bronze and silver into gold, the 27-year-old narrowly missing a first-place finish in both London and Rio.

This year she will have two chances to stand on top of the podium, with the C1 event added to the program alongside the K1 discipline the athlete has won medals at the last two Games.

On her day, Fox is the best canoe-slalom athlete on the planet, winning 10 world titles throughout her career.

She also proved a year without competition had not slowed her down, winning gold at World Cup events in the Czech Republic and Germany.

However, such is the nature of the sport, only the slightest error can prove the difference between gold and silver and Fox will have to be at her best to win the one medal she so desperately craves.

BMX Freestyle

One of Australia's unheralded athletes, Martin will compete in a new event in Tokyo, the BMX freestyle competition.

In a sign of his determination to win gold, the Queenslander built a BMX park in his backyard in 2019.

Martin had the perfect tune up for the Games, taking out the World Championships in early June.

The 27-year-old's winning run was hailed as one of the best ever and a repeat-showing in Tokyo will have him primed for a medal.

"My goal is to always do my best," Martin said when the team was announced.

"I know my best will be a big contender for a gold medal so I always try to focus on that leading into events and it will be the same heading into Tokyo."

Athletics

The new star of Australian athletics, McSweyn has dominated the domestic middle and long-distance running scene in recent years.

With national records ranging from 1500m to 10,000m, he has shown his ability across the full spectrum of events.

His focus in Tokyo, however, will be on the 1500m and McSweyn is in top form just days out from the Games.

The Tasmanian bettered his Australian record during the Monaco Diamond League meet, becoming the first Australian to run under 3:30.

The 1500m is a famously tactical event, with even a slight mistake having the potential to dash an athlete's Olympic dream.

An Australian hasn't claimed a medal in the distance since Herb Elliott won gold in 1960, but McSweyn is confident he can be the man to break the drought.

"It's a huge honour to be the first Australian to run under 3:30 for the 1500m," he said after the race in Monaco.

"It shows that my momentum is building and if I can keep improving ahead of Tokyo, I feel like I can be competitive with the best guys in the world.

"Racing the best guys on the circuit gives you a lot of confidence, you get a good indication of how you stack up against the top guys and it also indicates where you need to work on to improve as well.

"I'm happy with the personal best but finishing fourth also shows that there is definitely room for improvement for me as well."

Among Australia's other medal contenders is Kelsey-Lee Barber. The 2019 world champion has struggled to reach her best this year, however a return to form will have her in the mix for gold.

Water Polo

Twenty-one years after Yvette Higgins delivered Australia a stunning victory over the USA in the women's water polo final of the Sydney Olympics, the Stingers are again on the hunt for gold.

The 2000 triumph inspired a generation of players, with the likes of Bronwen Knox deciding to pursue a career in the sport after witnessing a match live. Tokyo will mark her fourth Games.

Australia has struggled to reach those heights in the years since, the side winning two bronze medals from four Olympics.

The USA have won the past two gold medals, while the Stingers were disappointing in missing the podium in Rio.

Australia also fell to their rivals in the semi-final at the 2019 World Championships, the side eventually going on to claim bronze.

While their preparations have been hampered by coronavirus restrictions, the Stingers are confident heading into the Olympics.

The Australian team features a host of famous names, with Tilly Kearns the daughter of retired Wallaby Phil Kearns. Gabi Palm's father also toured with the Australian rugby side while Bronte Halligan's dad is former prolific goal-kicker Daryl Halligan.

The Stingers path to gold will not be easy, the team grouped with European powers Spain.

Top the pool, however, and the foundation will be set for a memorable run towards the top step of the podium.

Surfing

The 30-year-old will arrive in Japan in top form, having taken out the World Surfing Games in June.

The surfers will be competing away from the chaos of the Olympic Village, with the event to be held in Chiba on the country's east coast.

Fitzgibbons has fallen short of a World Surf League title throughout her career, but she has long targeted winning gold at these Games.

Unlike the season-long quest of a world title, there is only one chance to triumph at the Olympics and the Gerroa talent is determined to be at her best when it matters most.

"The other nations, they're coming in hungry and it's all about the fighting spirit and doing what it takes on the day," Fitzgibbons said in a recent press conference.

"We're starting to realise now that being included in the Olympics in these pressurised moments and these other sports that have only had this singular pinnacle moment in their sport.

"Now we're trying to work out those feelings for ourselves and these final couple of weeks you can feel that build up happening."

Rowing

An event the Australian men have had so much success over the years, the women get their chance to row for gold in Tokyo.

The female race was added to the program as part of changes to the rowing schedule for the Games, with organisers achieving gender equity.

The Australian women's team took out the 2019 World Championships, having also won the event in 2017 and finished second in 2018.

That has the crew of Annabelle McIntyre, Jessica Morrison, Lucy Stephan, Rosemary Popa primed to replicate the Oarsome Foursome of 1992 and 1996 and winning gold in Tokyo.

Australia is taking a high-quality rowing team to Japan with all nine boats in the mix for a medal.

The men's four will likely challenge for gold while the women's eight are determined to land on the podium after a more conventional preparation compared to Rio five years ago.