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HONG KONG: Former world record holder and Olympic gold medallist Liu Xiang easily won the 110-metre hurdles at the East Asian Games in Hong Kong on Friday, as he continues his return from a long injury lay-off.
The biggest name at the Games and one of China's most celebrated sportsmen, Liu, 26, eased home in a time of 13.66 secs in front of an expectant sell-out 3,500 crowd at Tseung Kwan O Sports Ground.
He even had time to slow up at the line to enjoy the moment.
"I felt a bit tired because it's the last race of the season, but I'm quite pleased with my performance," Liu told a throng of more than 100 journalists at the post-race press conference.
"I'm very happy to win the gold although the time was not great," he said, adding only taking part in competitions would bring back his sharpness.
The performance was far off Liu's personal best and former world record time of 12.88, and slower than the 13.15 he ran in September when he finished second to US rival Terrence Trammell in his first race after surgery.
Ji Wei, also of China, took a distant silver and South Korea's Park Tae-Kyong was third.
The world record is 12.87, set by Cuban Dayron Robles in June last year.
Liu's appearance was being closely watched because it was only his fourth since the Achilles injury which forced him to pull out of last year's Beijing Olympics and saw him undergo surgery in the United States in December.
Asked if he thought he could again break the world record, a relaxed but tired-looking Liu was cagey.
"It will be difficult to break the record but my aim next year is to get below 13 seconds," he said, putting his tiredness down to waking up at 6:00am for the heat in the morning.
Games officials had beefed up security for Liu's appearance in light of the intense media and public interest that surrounds him.
But the superstar said he was unfazed by all the attention.
"I have got used to it since Athens and I am getting more accustomed to it," he said.
At the 2004 Athens Games, Liu became the first Chinese man to win an Olympic track gold medal, propelling him to superstar status in China and earning him several lucrative sponsorship deals.
- AFP/ir
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