Berlin, Germany (JIS):

Jamaica's men's 4x100 metres gold-medal relay chances might have suffered a severe blow, as 100 metres bronze medallist Asafa Powell may not be able to compete in the event.

MVP boss Stephen Francis told Jamaica Information Service News that the sprinter is still feeling pain from the groin strain he suffered during Sunday's semi-finals of the men's 100 metres.

"At this point, I am not sure that Asafa will be able to run the relays. He is definitely out for the heats and I am not sure about the final," Francis said.

Precarious position

He said the injury will take about 10 days to heal. If Powell were to be unavailable to run in the final, the Jamaican team management would be in a precarious position with not enough front-line sprinters available to field a strong team.

Francis said the sprinter was still in discomfort.

"He is still feeling pain and we will have to watch the situation closely. He will definitely not be risked in the heats and we will have to wait for the final and see how much progress he would have made towards healing."

Asafa Powell anchored Jamaica's 4x100m men's relay team to a world-record run of 37.10 seconds at the Olympic Games in Beijing last year.

His withdrawal would be detrimental to Jamaica's chances, given the absence of Nesta Carter, Yohan Blake, Marvin Anderson and Steve Mullings from the championships.