Liu Xiang leaving the track

Liu Xiang quits

World and Olympic champion Liu Xiang has withdrew from the 110m hurdle event following a right foot injury.

Liu’s appearance was in doubt when it was reported last weekend that he was suffering from a sore Achilles tendon, but he showed up for the qualifying heat anyway.

The 90,000 crowd at the Beijing National Stadium didn’t manage to catch Liu Xiang in real action though, as he quit after a false start (by another hurdler), limping out of the race track into the tunnel. The Chinese are generally disappointed, but showing plenty of support for the iconic athlete.

Liu Xiang was China’s best (and probably the only) hope for a gold medal at the track and field event.

Read the rest of this post »

Beijing Olympics roundup (6) from YeinJee's Asian Blog