Andre De Grasse, the Canadian widely considered to be Usain Bolt’s biggest rival for 100m gold at the world championships in London, has been forced to pull out of the event after tearing a hamstring.

The 22-year-old, who won bronze in the 100m and silver in the 200m behind Bolt in Rio last year, had run a wind-assisted 9.69sec this season and had spoken confidently about being in the form of his life and his ambitions to beat the Jamaican in London.

However, those hopes ended when he ripped his hamstring in training this week. In a message on his Facebook page, De Grasse admitted his disappointment: “Injuries are a part of the sport, and the timing of this one is especially unfortunate.

“While I’m in the best shape of my life and extremely disappointed that I will not have the chance to compete for my country in London, I can’t forget or be ungrateful for the successes that I’ve been blessed with up to this point in my career.

“Thank you to my family, friends and fans that have supported me all the way. I’ll be back stronger and faster than ever.”

De Grasse’s team had hoped that he might have been able to compete in the 200m with a few days’ rest but an MRI scan showed he would have to miss the rest of the season.

His manager, Paul Doyle, said: “We tried to do everything we could to have him ready but he’s just not going to be ready. Further MRI results showed it’s probably going to be another four to six weeks before he’s fully recovered. So unfortunately he’s out of the 100m, 200m and the relay and done for the season.”

De Grasse’s absence means that Bolt’s greatest challenge in the 100m is likely to come from his fellow Jamaican Yohan Blake, who has run 9.93sec this season – a time that is 0.02sec quicker than his friend and rival.