The Athens all-around gold medalist Paul Hamm will not defend his title in Beijing this August as a new physical setback is nagging his performance, according to the New York Times on Tuesday.

In this June 19, 2008 file photo, Olympic champion Paul Hamm shows off his injured hand during a news conference before the men's first day of competition for the US Olympic gymnastics trials in Philadelphia. Hamm will not compete in Beijing. [Agencies]

The gymnast, who became the first American to win the coveted men's all-round gold, staged an extraordinary comeback nine days ago after he had broken the fourth metacarpal on his right hand in May.

Hamm proved his fitness last week by participating in a pre-Olympic training camp in Colorado Springs. Yet he unfortunately strained his rotator cuff during the weekend .

"I've put my heart and soul into this comeback," New York Times cited the 25-year-old as saying. "Unfortunately, the week after the camp has been a disaster," he said. "I have not been able to do a single full routine since I competed back in May at the U.S. Championships in Houston."

The incident is a major blow for the Americans, who were fourth at last year's world championships and hoped Hamm's comeback would help the men's team return to the podium. Hamm, the only American to win the world (2003) and Olympic (2004) all-around titles, led the Americans to win silver at the team competition four years ago at Athens.

Hamm's withdrawl also makes Chinese Yang Wei miss the showdown with his arch-rival in the all-around competition. Yang, the two-time defending world champion and the 2000 Olympic all-round silver medallist, saw Hamm as his toughest challenge.

According to New York Times, Hamm has been replaced by American Raj Bhavsar, a member of the USA silver medal world championship teams in 2001 and 2003.

Team USA is scheduled to leave for Beijing on Wednesday and the competition begins on August 9, one day after the Games' opening ceremony.

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