Sven Kramer will not compete in the remainder of the speed skating season as the Olympic 5,000m champion is suffering from a right leg injury.
The 24-year-old has already withdrawn from the Dutch single distances championships and the World Cup events in Heerenveen and Berlin.
Kramer hoped that a period of rest would help to heal the injury and he seemed to be on his way back.
But the injury arose again. "It's the inside of my knee", he said to Dutch television channel NOS. "I can not put enough pressure on my leg, so I can not train fully. We will now investigate exactly where the complaints are coming from. That will take some time."
Because of the injury, Kramer will not be able to defend his titles at the European and World Championships.