Brazilian marathon runner Cordeiro out of Beijing Olympics

BRASILIA, May 7 (Xinhua) -- After taking a physical examination on Wednesday, the Brazilian marathon runner, Vanderlei Cordeiro, is further away from this year's Olympic Games.

Due to the results of the test, the athlete canceled his participation in the Prague Marathon, set to take place on Sunday. The runner needed to run in Sunday's event in order to improve his time and win a spot on the Brazilian Olympic team.

Cordeiro was forced to watch the Turin Marathon in Italy earlier this year in April. He was diagnosed with an inflamed left quadricep. He, along with his team of physical therapists and doctors, had attempted to recuperate and strengthen the muscle, however, the test taken on Wednesday showed that he has not returned to be 100 percent. For this reason, he will too have to watch the race in the Czech Republic.

Due to Vanderlei's absence, the three spots on the Olympic running team belong to Marilson Gomes, Jose Teles and Franck Caldeira. Vanderlei is currently ranked as fourth with a time 21seconds slower than Caldeira. Vanderlei had hoped to compete in his fourth Olympic Games. He is best known for his heroic performance in the 2004 Games in Athens. There, he was in command of the race when he was attacked by Irish priest, Cornelius Horan. Despite having been taken off of the road and out of the race, he was able to continue his pace and finish in third place, winning the bronze medal.