Chinese hurdler Liu still needs time to recover， says coach

SHANGHAI， June 30 （Xinhua） －－ Chinese hurdler Liu Xiang will have to postpone his long coveted comeback due to the lingering injury in his right ankle， Liu's head coach Sun Haiping confirmed on Tuesday.

Liu Xiang, China's 110m-hurdle world champion and Olympic gold medal winner clears a hurdle during a training session in  Shanghai, east China, on June 30, 2009. As Sun Haiping, Liu's  coach said during today's press conference, the hurdler is  recovering well from his ankle injury but he is not a hundred  percent fit for competition. The former 110m hurdles record holder pulled out of the Beijing Olympics last year due to an  injury and has since not been in competition. (Xinhua/Ren Long)

The news came as a big relief for Liu's fans after earlier rumors of his possible retirement.

"We feel satisfied about Liu's recovery and the medical check revealed that his tendon is getting better but it's not enough yet。 He still needs time before coming back to competition，" said Sun.

Liu， a surprise package winning 110m hurdles in 2004 Athens Games， has been in training since he returned to Shanghai in March after three months in the United States， where he underwent surgery on his right ankle tendon in December.