Allen Johnson pulls out of the race.

Allen Johnson, the gold medallist in the 110m hurdles at Atlanta 1996, lost his chance to compete at Beijing 2008 after pulling out of the preliminary heats at the US Olympic track and field trials in Oregon on Saturday due to a leg injury.

The 37-year-old and four-time world champion will miss his chance of competing in his fourth Olympics. This could well be the cruel end of his legendary Olympic career.

"After the first hurdle, I felt it," Johnson was quoted by Washingtonpost.com as saying, "and as I kept going, the pain just got progressively worse. I didn't know what to expect. It didn't heal. It didn't hold up."

Johnson, a seven-time US outdoor champion, said he had injured the posterior tibialis tendon in his lower leg in March. And the "sharp pain" became increasingly intense after the Adidas Track Classic in California in May, he said.

"I was hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst," Johnson was quoted again by Washingtonpost.com as saying. "It's real disappointing, but this is what sports is all about. I've had some great days and some bad days, and this is one of the bad days."

When asked whether he would try to qualify for London 2012, he acknowledged that it would be a long shot at the age of 41 although he would like to do it.

In the men's 110m hurdles final of the US track and field trials, David Oliver, Terrence Trammell and David Payne booked their tickets to Beijing 2008 by finishing in the first three places.

(BOCOG July 8, 2008)