Ian Thorpe fighting serious infection in Sydney hospital

Five-times Olympic swimming champion Ian Thorpe is in a Sydney hospital fighting a "serious" infection and may not swim again, his manager told Australian media late on Tuesday.

“It’s serious but it’s not life-threatening,” Thorpe’s agent James Erskine told Australian Associated Press.

“From a competitive point of view – he will not be swimming competitively again I don’t think.”

Earlier reports that the 31-year-old Australian is in intensive care and may lose the use of his left arm have been played down.

Thorpe has been suffering with a shoulder injury for some time and underwent surgery at the start of the year. He was then admitted to hospital in Sydney in February following a fall and subsequently sought treatment for depression at a rehabilitation centre.

Thorpe won five Olympic gold medals in 2000 and 2004, but a comeback attempt ahead of the London 2012 Games was unsuccessful.

He also announced last year he had given up hope of competing at this summer’s Commonwealth Games and at the 2016 Olympics in Rio because of the injury.