JOIN USOlympic champion Andrei Aramnau has been forced to pull out of the London Games because of a thigh injury, the Belarussian weightlifter said on Tuesday.
"Unfortunately I pulled a muscle in my thigh. It's quite serious," Aramnau told local media. "It would take me about two months to recover, so London is out of the question,’’ he added.
Aramnau has had his share of problems since winning the 105kg gold in Beijing four years ago, breaking several world records in the process. He was named the Belarus Athlete of the Year in 2008 following his Olympic triumph.
"I was in great shape, but for whatever reason my coach had asked me to compete in a meaningless competition, where I first suffered the injury," he said. "I tried to jerk a record weight and just aggravated it.”