The granite core of Team GB will be in action at the Games this weekend,with Hannah Miley aiming to become the first Scot to strike Olympic swimming gold for 36 years.
The 22 year-old from Garioch, who has already claimed Commonwealth gold and world championship silver, will not be at Friday's opening ceremony, preferring to concentrate on her challenge in the 400m individual medley, which is her best event. But Miley is quietly confident that if she performs to her potential, she can lift the coveted title.
"I'm looking forward to it, because I think the atmosphere will be unbelievable, and this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to appear at the Olympics in front of your home crowd," said Miley, whose tough-as-teak philosophy has seen her swimming thousands of miles in training, under the gaze of her father and coach, Patrick, during her rise to fame.
"Obviously, I want to do as well as I possibly can, but I also want to enjoy the Games. It has been a long time coming, but you can sense the anticipation and excitement building up."
The Aberdeen duo, Robbie Renwick and David Carry, will also pursue their swimming aspirations on Saturday and Sunday and have demonstrated in the past that they possess the requisite commitment and determination to be in contention for honours.
On Sunday, meanwhile, the Granite City's caoeing star, David Florence, will launch his bid for Games triumph in the C1 class, with realistic prospects of sparring for gold.
The task for the 29 year-old is for him to parade the same unfettered derring-do and mixture of technical expertise and spontaneous excellence which earned him a silver at the Beijing festival in 2008 and his build-up to London has been exemplary.
"It's about putting together the best run you can and this is one of the most unpredictable sports at the Olympics, so I know I can't take anything for granted," said Florence.
"I won silver at the World Cup [in Spain] earlier this summer, but the guy who ended up getting the gold had never won a medal before of any colour. So that was a reminder of how close the margins are when you are competing at this level."
There are no easy routes to glory on the Olympic stage. But Miley, Florence and their north-east compatriots have the right stuff to thrill Scotland and Team GB.
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