Injury halts Klitschko comeback bout

A back injury has forced former WBC heavyweight boxing champion Vitali Klitschko to postpone his comeback fight against Jameel McCline, which was due to take place on September 22.

The 36-year-old Ukrainian suffered back pain during a training session in Austria and was forced to undergo emergency spinal disc surgery in Innsbruck on Saturday evening, according to German newspaper Bild.

"I can't believe my bad luck," Klitschko said. "I have prepared myself for nine weeks and now this happens."

Klitschko's last fight was in December 2004 when he stopped Danny Williams in the eighth round.

A string of injuries, including ACL problems, forced him to retire in November 2005 before announcing his comeback earlier this year. Recovery is expected to take six weeks.