Zou needs more time to recover

Zou Shiming isn't quite ready to toss in the towel.

China's two-time Olympic gold medalist and former WBO flyweight champion has checked out of hospital in Shanghai after being treated for vision problems that threaten to end his boxing career.

The 36-year-old, who lost the world title to Japan's Sho Kimura when he was stopped in the 11th round in his first title defense last July, has had some improvement in his vision but it's too early to say when or if he will return to the ring.

"He just got out of hospital and is staying at home to recover. The (left) eye has recovered a bit but still could not be called healthy," a member of his training staff told AFP on the weekend.

Xinhua earlier reported that Zou had sustained orbital fractures in both eyes.

The fighter took to Weibo, China's equivalent of Twitter, to thank hospital staff and his fans for their support, adding: "I'm still me!"

Zou, 9-2 with 1 KO, won the vacant title by unanimous decision over Thailand's Prasitsak Phaprom in November 2016 in Las Vegas.