In the biggest upset of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games for host country China, world and Olympic champion Liu Xiang stumbled at the start of his qualifying heat in round one of the Men’s 110m Hurdles on Monday morning. During his warm-up, Liu grimaced as he attempted to stride over a set of two hurdles. He stepped onto the track with the other runners in his heat and warmed up in his start lane. In one practice run, he fell to his knees and held his leg. After a false start first-round heat, he attempted a run several times, but eventually shook his head, removed his race numbers and began to repeatedly kick a wall.

He later withdrew entirely from the event. At a press conference following the event, Liu’s coach confirmed that the star’s withdrawal was as a result of an injury to his right take-off foot, which has been affecting him for about six years. Liu also reported on his own website Sunday that he was suffering from a sore Achilles tendon. Liu Xiang’s showdown with Dayron Robles, the Cuban who took away his world record earlier this summer, was one of the most eagerly-anticipated events of the Games.

China’s Liu Xiang out of Men’s 110m Hurdles