No result on Liu's leg but surgery looks likely

Question marks still hang over Liu Xiang's future after he wrapped up his trip to the United States yesterday without a firm decision on the foot injury that saw him hobble out of the Beijing Olympics without even attempting to defend his gold medal in August.

Liu was scheduled to fly home today after spending seven days in the US gathering second opinions from doctors there after Chinese experts recommended he undergo surgery, a drastic measure that China's 110m world champion hurdler and his coach Sun Haiping are praying can be avoided.

Liu posted a note of optimism on his official website ahead of his return to quell the fears of legions of Chinese fans.