Diack: Athletics world to miss Liu Xiang

IAAF President Lamine Diack said on Tuesday that the athletics world will miss Chinese star hurdler Liu Xiang after his long-awaited retirement.

"We are happy to have him," said the 83-year-old Diack. "He has made great contributions to his country and our sport. The sport will miss him."

Diack, who has been the IAAF chief since 1999 but will retire before the Beijing World Championships in August, spoke highly of Liu's achievement.

"He is a great champion. He has pushed forward the sport of athletics in China," he said. "On behalf of IAAF, I wish him a successful life after retirement."

Liu became China's first male Olympic champion in athletics when he won the 110m hurdles at the 2004 Games, equalling Briton Colin Jackson's world record of 12.91 seconds. Three years later he won a world championship gold in Osaka, Japan.

Liu bettered the world record to 12.88 seconds in Lausanne, Switzerland in July 2006. Aries Merritt of the United States is current world record holder in 12.80.

At the 2008 Beijing Games, Liu limped off in a first-round heat with an aggravated Achilles tendon injury following another runner's false start.

Four year later at London Olympics, Liu Xiang pulled out of competition again for a similarly claimed reason.

Gianni Merlo, President of AIPS, the World Association of Sports Journalists, also praised Liu as a successful athlete and a nice man.

"Liu Xiang is a champion who has opened a chapter even in the history of your country, because he was able to jump also over all the boundaries of sport and politics," Merlo told Xinhua in a written message.

"He is a very nice guy and it was always and it will be also in the future to meet and speak with him. He is able to speak also with body language when the English is not sufficient.

"He has an open mind and I think that it is very good as role model for the young generation.

"The drama in Beijing Olympics is part of the human history of the Chinese and world sport." Endi