Pearson's Rio hopes not good, says chef de mission

Australian Olympic hurdles champion Sally Pearson has been injured during training, and the team's chef de mission said Wednesday her chance of competing in Rio "doesn't look good".

Pearson, Australia's top athlete who won 100 metres hurdles gold at London in 2012, sustained a hamstring injury while training on the The reports said she would miss Rio but Athletics Australia (AA) tweeted only that Pearson "will be made available to the media" on Thursday.

country's Gold Coast, News Corporation newspapers said.

An AA spokesman said there would be no further comment before her press conference, but the Australian Olympic team's chef de mission Kitty Chiller said the signs were not encouraging.

"She's fought so hard over the last year. It hasn't been confirmed yet as to her likelihood of running in Rio, but it doesn't look good," the Australian Broadcasting Corporation quoted her as saying in Perth.

"It is just such a shame for a fantastic champion, a fantastic fighter and if she doesn't run in Rio I'll be very, very sad for Sally and the team."

The Australian Olympic Team added on its Twitter feed: "Sad to read injury reports on @sallypearson. She was fighting to be fit for Rio."

The 29-year-old only returned to competition in June after spending a year on the sidelines following a fall that shattered her wrist, which affected the technique she uses at the start of a race.

But hee return did not go to plan, with Pearson trailing in after pacesetting Americans in three races in Europe.

Earlier this month she pulled out of her last scheduled race in Stockholm to return to her Gold Coast base and focus on training for Rio.

In a blog post on June 18, Pearson reflected on the "broken bones, torn calf, degenerative achilles and hammy problems" that have plagued her over the past year.

"What brings athletes back even after we get pushed down time and time again from disappointment?" she wrote.

"For me, it's the excitement, the fun and the pure determination that I can overcome the setbacks and still deliver my best."

But Pearson also admitted she was struggling for fitness.

"I have now been home for six days. I have left nothing in the tank on my return," she said.

"Training has been intensely hard and I am exhausted from it but at this stage I have absolutely no other choice if I am going to be competitive in Rio.

"I have just less than nine weeks until I compete and I am going to do everything in my power to be the best athlete I can be while representing my country in the biggest sporting event in the world."

Pearson, who also won hurdles silver at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and gold at the 2011 Daegu Athletics World Championships, is the Australian track and field team captain and was due to race her opening Olympic heat on August 16.