Chinese 110m hurdles world champion Liu Xiang makes his first public appearance after surgery on an injured foot that denied him the chance to defend his Olympic title during last year's Beijing Games.

Athens Olympic gold-medal hurdler Liu Xiang is still the idol of the Chinese people although he quit the match for his foot injury in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. He was crowded by news reporters and participants in the 2009 Beijing International Long-distance Running Festival.

Liu Xiang said, "I feel very excited when I see the passionate people here. I am very grateful to the people who support me and care about me. I know what I should do to return to them."