Liu Xiang's first domestic appearance after he set a new world record has boosted the ticket sales of the upcoming National Athletic Championship.

Liu's coach Sun Haiping has confirmed that the world record holder will defend his title in the men's 110-meter hurdles race, which is scheduled on August 7 in Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province.

According to local ticket agencies, the tickets for Liu Xiang's race were sold at double price than the normal ones, while many people have already booked the tickets two weeks before the race.

The Athens Olympic champion set a new world record of 12.88 seconds at the Lausanne Grand Prix early this month.

(CRI July 26, 2006)