New Zealand will send a record-sized team of 182 athletes to the Beijing Olympic Games next month.

The New Zealand Olympic Committee was able to finalize the team after the men's basketball side failed in its qualifying campaign in Athens over the weekend.

The previous biggest team was 150 at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. At Athens in 2004, that number fell to 148.

The inclusion of 18-strong men's and women's soccer squads, both making their Olympic debuts, has boosted the number considerably.

Men's and women's hockey teams add 32 more to the mix while swimming and cycling both provide 17 athletes each.

(Xinhua News Agency July 21, 2008)