Chinese women's volleyball star Zhao Ruirui will miss the rest
of the Athens Olympics, Chinese senior sports official revealed on
Sunday.
"Basically speaking, she will not be able to play," Xiao Tian,
secretary general of the Chinese Sports Delegation told Xinhua.
"There was a new fracture in her old injury," Xiao added.
The 1.96-meter Zhao, who had been sidelined since fracturing her
right leg in training in late March, made her comeback in China's
3-1 victory over the United States in the opening preliminary pool
match at the Athens Olympics on Saturday, but left the court
minutes into the match after jumping for a quick spike and getting
injured again.
Zhao was sent to hospital soon after to have x-rays and the
ATHOC announced at midnight that she had another fracture.
The Chinese women, who are seeking their first Olympic gold
medal since 1984, will play the rest of the tournament with 11
players.
Zhao, the most popular volleyball player in China, missed the
Sydney Olympics four years ago with a serious injury in her
meniscus.
(Xinhua News Agency August 15, 2004)