Liu Xiang is set to bid goodbye at the Diamond League Shanghai on May 17. (Photo : Reuters)
Liu Xiang, dubbed as China’s “flying man,” will bid his goodbye at the Diamond League Shanghai on May 17 after announcing his retirement earlier in April, the organizing committee revealed.
On April 7, the iconic male hurdler stated through his Weibo account, China's version of Twitter, that he will already retire, ending his 19-year dramatic career.
Liu was the first male Olympic champion on athletics the country has produced. He also won four times in his all seven attendances at the Diamond League's 2010 edition.
The sports star made history after winning the 100-meter hurdles during the 2004 Athens Games, sharing the previous world record of 12.91 seconds with Briton Colin Jackson.
Two years later, Liu was able to set a new record of 12.88 seconds during an IAAF meet held in Lausanne.
In 2007, he became the first male hurdler to be an Olympic and world champion while at the same time be a world record holder.
Though he is considered by many as China's most popular athletics Olympic champion, Liu has also faced obstacles throughout his career. He stunned the international sports community after quitting two consecutive Olympic Games because of a ruptured Achilles tendon.
During the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, he suffered a tragic injury but was able to recover because of his strong will. However, he never came back to the track after the London Games.
Meanwhile, 24-year-old Xie Wenjun, the defending champion of men's 110-meter hurdles, is considered as Liu's successor. But for some analysts, the rising hurdler still lacks convincing results to back the title of being the sports legend's heir.
