Olympic men's 110-meter hurdles champion and world record-holder Liu Xiang of China participates a promotional event of the upcoming Shanghai Golden Grand Prix field and track tournament Wednesday, May 9, 2007 in Shanghai, China.
China's 110m hurdles champion Liu Xiang is currently ranked first in the world ranking for his sport.

The new list compiled by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) ranks Liu Xiang at the top of his field with a total score of 1398.

He is followed by Daron Robles from Cuba and Allen Johnson from the USA.

Liu Xiang scored his first outdoor 110m hurdles title this year with a comfortable time of 13.14 seconds at the 2007 Osaka World Athletics Tour on May 5.

Another Chinese hurdler called Shi Dongpeng rose to 19th place in the world ranking with a score of 1242, displacing Ladji Doucoure from France.

Liu Xiang became a huge sporting celebrity in China after winning gold at the Athens Olympics in 2004. His fame only increased last summer after he set a new world record of 12.88 seconds in the 110m hurdles, smashing his previous personal best of 12.91 seconds, which he shared with top British hurdler Colin Jackson.