Germany’s Fischer abandons Beijing plans
Germany’s Birgit Fischer, who won eight canoeing gold medals in six Olympics between 1980 and 2004, said on Tuesday she was abandoning plans to try to compete in the Beijing Games.　　Fischer, 45, won an eighth gold medal in Athens in 2004 in the women’s K4 500.
　　”My decision not to try for Beijing is final,” Fischer told German sports news agency SID.
　　”I thought long and hard about it and it wasn’t an easy decision. But looking back I can say I had a wonderful time.”
　　Fischer, who also won 27 world championship titles, won at least one medal in six Olympics. She said that she felt she could have won another two or three if East Germany had not boycotted the 1984 Olympics
