Rumors swirl over spectacular failure of star Chinese hurdler

China is in a state of shock after Liu Xiang, a star hurdler nicknamed "Yellow Bullet," crashed out of the men`s 110-meter hurdles Tuesday in the London Summer Olympics.

His exit dominated the headlines of major Chinese media, including China Central Television, or CCTV, even until Wednesday afternoon.

Liu became a national hero in China by ascending to the elite of an event that had long been dominated by Western athletes. He also appeared on many Chinese TV commercials.

He soared to stardom after winning a gold medal at the 2004 Athens Summer Olympics but disappointed fans in China when he withdrew from the men`s 110-meter hurdles in the 2008 Beijing Olympics due to injury. After recovering, he tied an unofficial world record in June this year, fueling his country`s hopes that he would recapture the top spot in London.

Before Tuesday`s race, official Chinese media unusually reported on the possibility of Liu failing to medal in London in an apparent attempt to lessen the shock in the event of his failure.

The official Xinhua News Agency said Wednesday that it was "unrealistic" to expect him to win a gold medal, stressing that his entry in the Olympics itself was "heroic."

A CCTV reporter covering the London Games said an instruction was circulated among his colleagues that Liu`s appearance at the starting line should be considered a victory.

Nevertheless, his failure sent significant shockwaves through China, with Chinese expressing feelings of condolence, sadness and anger en masse. Many Chinese Internet users had encouraged their fallen hero but some went as far as to claim that he had to compete for the sake of his advertisers and then fell on purpose.

Xinhua asked Wednesday if his coaches gave him painkillers knowing that he would have trouble with his muscles, and why he was given the psychological burden of wearing the number 1336 on his back, a number that he had worn at the Beijing Games.

mungchii@donga.com