Nelson Evora on the road to recovery

Nelson Evora of Portugal.

Portugal's 2008 Olympic Games Triple Jump champion winner Nelson Evora has had successful surgery on his right shin stress fracture at right shin-bone, his surgeons announced.

He will now have three weeks complete rest and, after that, will begin his rehabilitation.

The operation lasted almost four hours and was supervised by Dr. Antonio Martins, head of the Medical Department at the giant Benfica sports club.

The medical team admitted that Evora's participation in the European Athletics Championships this summer, and another enthralling encounter with Great Britain's 2009 World Champion and European Athlete of the Year Phillips Idowu, is still doubtful but they did leave open the prospect that Evora might get back to full fitness in time to make a worthwhile trip to Barcelona in July.

Cheering him up a little will be the fact that last week Evora was voted 'Portugal's sexiest sportsman' in a widespread internet poll in which more than 20,000 people voted, even beating football player Cristiano Ronaldo.