Spain triathlon world champion Gomez Noya pulls out of Rio after accident

[July 14, 2016]    MADRID (Reuters) - Spain's world and European triathlon champion Javier Gomez Noya pulled out of the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro on Thursday after fracturing his left arm in a bicycle accident, according to the Spanish Olympic Committee.

Javier Gomez Noya of Spain celebrates after winning the men's triathlon at the ITU World Olympic Qualification event on Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, August 2, 2015. REUTERS/Sergio Moraes/File Photo

Gomez Noya, the only triathlete to wind five world titles, was among the favorites to clinch gold at this year's Olympics in Rio after claiming silver in London in 2012.

"Unfortunately this has forced me to pull out of competing in Rio. I need to be realistic, there is no time to prepare and to be fit on the start line of the games," Gomez Noya said on its Twitter account.

Gomez Noya recently won his most prestigious sports award, the Princess of Asturias prize, for his "brilliant achievements".

(Reporting By Jesús Aguado; Editing by Paul Day)

[© 2016 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2016 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.