Japanese gymnast Takehiro Kashima, a member of Japan's gold medal-winning team at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, underwent shoulder surgery last week and is expected to miss this year's world championships, sources close to him said Wednesday.
Kashima had surgery last Friday at a hospital in Chiba Prefecture after dislocating his left shoulder and intends to focus on rehabilitation by skipping the world championships to be held in Aarhus, Demark, in October.
Kashima, known for his specialty in the pommel horse, won the bronze medal in the discipline at the 2002 world championships.
He became the first Japanese to win the pommel horse world title the following year and went on to win the pommel horse bronze in addition to the team gold at the Athens Olympics.
Last year, Kashima overcame a chronic shoulder injury to win the pommel horse bronze again at the world championships in November.