BEIJING--The heat is on but the country's two taekwondo fighters at the 29th Olympiad here are too detached from a boxing tragedy to get unstrung.

With the stunning exit of Harry Tañamor--and the Philippine contingent's first of three solid cracks at a medal gone--all eyes are on Marie Antoinette Rivero and Tshomlee Go to put the Philippines on the Olympic scoreboard.

Go plunges into action in the -58 kg battles Wednesday with fellow Athens Games veteran Rivero following suit in the -67 kg class the next day at the University of Science and Technology Beijing Gymnasium.

"I understand the pressure," said the 20-year-old Rivero as she finally checked into the Athletes Village with Go and coaches Raul Samson and Kim Hong-sik Friday morning. "I'm so excited and eager to compete. This is it. I'm here to enjoy myself."

Go said the team's pressure gauge didn't crank up after Tañamor bowed to Ghanian Manyo Plange in their light flyweight contest Wednesday night.

Team Philippines officials had expected Tañamor, a World Championship silver medalist, to contend for a medal here like the taekwondo-jins.

"Focused lang ako dito, ready na ako," said Go. "We are going to do what we came here for: do our best for our country."

Of the three RP taekwondo hopes in Athens, Rivero came closest to a medal.

The then 16-year-old Rivero fell a win shy of the silver, dropping a close 3-2 decision to Greece's Elisavet Mystakidou, and eventually missed out on the bronze after losing in the repechage to South Korea's Hwang Kyung-seon. Mystakidou is now 31, her form ravaged by time, but Hwang--who went on to win the World Championships gold back-to-back in 2005 and 2007--still remains a force in the weight class.

Go, the fierce battler from Bicol and Binondo, went on to bag the silver at the 2006 Doha Asian Games after failing to progress past the quarterfinals. He bowed to Spain's Juan Antonio Ramos in a close, thrilling repechage.

Go's biggest rival in Beijing is Chinese Taipei's Chu Mu-yen, who topped the Manchester meet, and Germany's Levent Tumcat, who beat Go in the fight for the silver.

The RP jins have trained long and hard for Beijing.

In the last stage of their overseas training in South Korea, Go fought heavier opponents while Rivero sparred with men.