Austrian swimmer beaten up in Italian disco

ROME/VIENNA - Top Austrian swimmer Markus Rogan ended the world championship in Rome on a painful note as he was beaten up by four in a discotheque.

After failing to advance to the 50m backstroke semifinals on Saturday, Rogan went to a club in Ostia near the Italian capital, the Austrian press agency APA reported.

The 27-year-old European backstroke champion said he was thrown out of the club, tried to enter it again, and was then beaten up so badly he was expected to check into a private hospital until Monday.

“Pretty much everything hurts,” said Rogan, whose left foot and face were swollen after the incident.

At the world championship, Rogan was handicapped by a ligament injury in one foot. His best performance was in the 100m backstroke event, where he came in 11th.

At the European championship in Eindhoven in the Netherlands last year, the swimmer won two gold medals.