By Gene Cherry
DOHA (Reuters) - Chinese hurdler Liu Xiang's chances of defending his world indoor title this weekend are almost impossible, one of his country's top coaches said on Wednesday.
"He felt he should come," Feng Shuyong, technical leader of the Chinese world championship team, said of Liu's first global meeting since a heartbreaking Achilles injury left him unable to start the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
"But the purpose of coming here is not to go for the medals. It's almost impossible," Feng told Reuters in a telephone interview. "He just likes to experience the atmosphere of the championships.
"There may still be a chance for a medal but I think it will be quite difficult.
Slow recovery from his Achilles surgery plus a recent cold have left Liu in not very good shape, said Feng, who has closely followed the former world record holder and 2004 Olympic champion's career.
"He is getting better slowly but there are still problems," the coach said. "When he does high intensity training, it needs two or three days to recover."
The U.S. doctor who performed Liu's surgery said test results during a visit showed the tendon was good but noted more time would be needed for full recovery.
"Another person might have stopped," Feng said before adding: "but in the bottom of his heart, I think he has set a target of London.
"He prepared for four years to compete in the Olympics in his own country, but unfortunately he could not run in Beijing, so that was a very big regret."
The 2012 London Games would give Liu one more chance.
"He knows it won't be easy," Feng said, "He will be 29 years old with some injuries.
"But it doesn't matter much to him. He just wants to run there and he will be satisfied."
(Editing by Pritha Sarkar)
