Updated at 11.44

IRELAND’S THOMAS BARR has been forced to withdraw from tonight’s IAAF World Championships Men’s 400m hurdles semi-finals, Athletics Ireland have confirmed.

The Waterford runner, who progressed from the first round on Sunday morning, has pulled out of the competition after picking up a vomiting bug.

In a statement released to communications firm Galvin Sports Management, who Barr is a brand ambassador for, the athlete said: “I’m gutted to have to withdraw from today’s semi final.

“I wasn’t feeling great yesterday evening and later in the night I was hit with a bad bout of gastroenteritis.

“My whole year has been focused on the World Championships. The support yesterday was just brilliant and to not be able to go out and compete today for Ireland is beyond disappointing.”

The star’s absence means there will be no Irish athletes competing on Day 4 of the event in London.

The 25-year-old is looking to build on a phenomenal 2016, in which he was named Athlete of the Year for the second successive time at the National Athletics Awards in Dublin, after narrowly missing out on an Olympic bronze in the 400m hurdle final in Rio.

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