French Olympians fine tune in South Pacific

France's boxing, gymnastics, triathlon and fencing teams are fine-tuning their pre-Olympic preparations in the South Pacific.

Less than three weeks before the start of the Sydney Games, the gymnasts were training just a few hours after flying into Noumea from Paris on Tuesday.

"We want to shake off the jet-lag as soon as possible," said technical director Jean-Claude Jacquetin.

Dominique Nato, director of the boxing team, said it was important his team adjusted quickly to the different time zone and trained in climatic conditions similar to those they can expect in Sydney.

Members of the French tennis squad are expected in New Caledonia next Monday, provided none of them have commitments in the second week of the U.S. Open.