With a quota of 172 spots available, just making it to Beijing could be considered an achievement in itself for South Africa canoeist Shaun Rubenstein. But when you consider that Africa has just one of those spots — him being there is actually a miracle.

Rubenstein broke through the front door after finishing seventh in the men's K1 1000m and eighth in the men's k1 500m at the 2007 World Championships in Duisburg, Germany.

Sounds easy, doesn't it? Wrong.

"Only the top eight from the world champs qualify (for the Olympics) and then you can qualify through the different zones," reveals Rubenstein to sport.iafrica.com.

"It really is tough. There are some top-class guys who did not even qualify for Beijing. Most people don't realise how tough, and how close, it actually is."

Before his Beijing qualification, Rubenstein was primarily a marathon contender, his breakthrough success coming in the form of a gold medal at the World Marathon Championships in Tremolat in 2006. But, as he points out, his decision to focus on the sprints was made with the Olympics in mind.

"The Olympics is sprints only, so I had to change a lot in order to compete in them. So to finish in the top eight was a big achievement.

"It (competing in the Olympics) is something I have always dreamt of being involved in," enthuses Rubenstein.

"I have had some success in the sprints — third in the 500 metres, I have finished in fourth place three times at the World Cup as well. So while I haven't had that breakthrough success (in the sprints) yet, I have been improving."

A relative unknown

The 24-year-old canoeist has been competing on the world stage since 2002, but despite his success he is still a relative unknown in South Africa — certainly nothing new for an athlete outside of the traditional sports — but he knows that it is all relative.

"The participation is very big with over 90 countries taking part at the World Champs — there were over 20 000 spectators in Hungary!" says Rubenstein.

"In Hungary it is as big as cricket or rugby is (in South Africa). In Hungary, and Germany, it is one of their top sports."

"It is pretty small in South Africa," he goes on to admit.

"It is pretty much the competitors who watch each other — when they are not racing, they watch the other guys."

You could not blame Rubenstein for feeling a little put out, but he offers a solid explanation for the lack of home support, saying: "Rugby players in South Africa are put on a pedestal. It is what you aspire to be as a kid. In canoeing only guys involved in the sport, or people who are involved with somebody in the sport, really know anything about it."

Rubenstein spends months training, and competing, abroad where the competition is at its strongest — which is where he began to realise the scope of his potential on the world stage.

"The Lottery funding, and my own personal sponsors, have led to me being able to train with the overseas guys," explains the Johannesburg-born canoeist.

"I think the realisation that these guys (foreign professionals) are just normal guys who can be beaten has been huge for me mentally.

"In South Africa there are two to three guys who have a chance to win, while overseas there are 10 to 12! That really lifts the intensity — if you are just slightly out of form, it's over."

Medal in sight

With such intense competition awaiting him in Beijing, we are left wondering how confident Rubenstein is of competing for a medal. By his own admission he is still searching for his breakthrough victory in the sprints. But in reality it is not as cut and dried as that.

"With the exception of one guy, Adam van Koeverden from Canada, I have beaten all the guys taking part in Beijing," says a confident Rubenstein.

"And the other guys have all beaten him (Van Koeverden)! So everybody will have a good chance of a medal. It is hell of a close."

Rubenstein, of course, is not the only canoeist taking part in the Beijing showpiece. The SA squad will feature 10 athletes in the water — a far cry from Athens four years ago.

"At Athens only one guy (legendary SA sprinter Alan van Coller) qualified," reveals Rubenstein. "The funding and support from the National Lottery and Sascoc has been a huge help in pushing the sport forward," he adds.

Living the dream

Rubenstein has been in Europe since May this year putting in the final preparations for the Games, and while he admits it can be tough to spend so many months away from his home comforts, he is more than willing to make the sacrifice.

"I have been very fortunate to have my folks over with me for the past two weeks and my girlfriend is going to be coming over as well. But it can be hard — I haven't seen my girlfriend in weeks...

"But the Olympics is my dream and you need to make sacrifices along the way — nothing is going to stand in my way of accomplishing my goal. At the end of the day Johannesburg is too cold at the moment, there is no way I could train there and I would not want to risk getting sick."

So what exactly is Rubenstein expecting from Beijing — his first-ever experience of the Olympic Games?

"I am not expecting anything different in terms of the competition because I know all the guys competing and know what to expect from them," he says.

"But in terms of the magnitude of the event I am expecting it to be huge! I have already built it up in my mind and knowing that I race in the last 10 days of the Olympics only — I am busy preparing myself not to be distracted by all the hype.

"I cannot afford to be sidelined by everything going on around me — my focus is on the race."