Australia's world champion 100 metres hurdler Sally Pearson has been forced to withdraw from her home Commonwealth Games as she battles an Achilles injury, she told reporters on Thursday.
Australian athlete Sally Pearson at the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games opening ceremony Photo: © Photosport Ltd 2018 www.photosport.nz
Pearson's absence is another blow for the quadrennial Games which have already been hit by a number of high-profile withdrawals by top athletes.
The 31-year-old has previously won gold in the 100m hurdles at the 2010 and 2014 Games, but missed out on a medal in Melbourne in 2006 and was forced to pull out of the Rio Olympics with a hamstring injury.
She won Olympic gold in 2012 in London after a silver medal win in Beijing in 2008.
- Reuters
