The New Nation - Internet Edition

BBC Online

Women's tennis world number three Maria Sharapova will miss the Beijing Olympics because of a shoulder injury.

The problem caused the 21-year-old Russian to withdraw from this week's WTA Rogers Open in Montreal.

She was in pain in her second-round 7-5 5-7 6-2 win over Poland's Marta Domachowska and an MRI scan revealed two small tears.

"This is something that needs a lot of time to heal. It really hurts me to say I have to miss the Olympics," she said.

"After Wednesday's match I knew there was something seriously wrong with my shoulder," added Sharapova on her official website.

"After taking a few different exams and MRI's, the doctors found two small tears in the tendons of my shoulder.

"There are so many mixed feelings because on Wednesday night they were almost positive there was something wrong with my nerve, which could have ultimately been much more serious.

"But after Thursday morning's tests, for the first time in a while, they were able to give me a different answer and a different problem.

"The timing is so unfortunate and this makes me more sad than anything."