The home team at the August Olympics will aim to exceed the 13-medal tally of the Sydney Games, and would like to win a total of 20, the head of Greece’s Olympic squad said yesterday, noting however that Greek athletes have been hampered by construction delays at venues.

The Hellenic Olympic Committee’s Yiannis Papadoyiannakis said the pre-Olympic team consists of 670 athletes, while the final selections for the Games will be announced on July 21, 23 days before the opening ceremony.

Papadoyiannakis complained that the sports angle of the Games has been overshadowed by questions about security and preparations. “The Olympics are above all a sports event,” he observed, adding that venue delays are a problem. “Delays in the delivery of certain venues has not allowed our athletes to get acquainted with the venues where they will compete,” he said.