Ian Thorpe released from hospital

Ian Thorpe's agent James Erskine says Thorpe has been released from hospital after becoming  sick following two infections he picked up in a Swiss hospital near his home town of Ronco sopra Ascona.

However, he will never swim competitively again.

He underwent a series of surgeries on his shoulder in Switzerland and returned to Sydney to receive treatment in an intensive care ward.

"It's serious but it's not life-threatening," Erskine said when he was admitted to hospital, adding that Thorpe won't lose the use of his arm due to the infection despite reports to the contrary. However, any chance of a future athletic career was over, he says.

Esrkine says the shoulder operation was a major operation and that Thorpe now has as many plates as Barry Sheene, the now deceased world champion motorcycle rider.

Reports suggest the infection contracted is similar in nature to the potentially deadly Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) superbug that has swept some hospitals in Europe.

Thorpe had earlier this year sought help for depression.

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