THERE was meant to be no drama for Jana Rawlinson in Beijing, but she won't even make it to the blocks in the Bird's Nest Stadium.

She had visualised finally claiming Olympic gold in world-record time, but will now set her sights on London 2012.

The Jana who was going to take the track in Beijing was different from the 20-something drama queen who made headlines before the Athens Olympics in 2004. She finished fifth in the final after an injury-interrupted preparation.

A different Jana from the one who had a slanging match with Tamsyn Lewis on the eve of the 2006 Commonwealth Games. Since becoming a mother to Cornelis early last year, remarkably becoming world champion eight months later, Rawlinson was more at peace with herself and was quietly building up to the Games.

But because of a toe problem, she will board a plane today, heartbroken, to return home to Sydney from London.

Track great Raelene Boyle felt very disappointed for Rawlinson.

"It's a terrible shame for her," Boyle said. "I feel very disappointed for Jana but I do believe she is good enough to go on for another two Games. The 400 metres hurdles is one of those events that you can compete in as a more mature athlete. It's a shame for Australian athletics that she won't be there in Beijing next month. It just shows you that it's a very hard sport on the body."

Without Rawlinson, Australia will look to 50-kilometre walker Nathan Deakes and pole vaulter Steve Hooker as gold medal favourites, with 5000m star Craig Mottram another contender.

There had been hope that despite her injury, Rawlinson could still make it to Beijing. Osaka had given her hope. She had been troubled by injury in the build-up to the world championships in Japan but still claimed gold.

What had even made her more certain about winning gold in Beijing was the calm brought to her life by her baby boy.

That was evident in Osaka.

Whereas she was scared and her hands shook as she placed them on the starting line in the world championships final in 2003 in Paris, Rawlinson was all calm at Nagai Stadium."I was really at peace to be honest," Rawlinson said last August. "With 'Cor', I'm more relaxed."

It is like that off the track, too.

"It's changed me," she said. "Realistically, I think it's better for my athletics than it would [be]."

This year her troubles started after surgery in January to remove cartilage from the second toe of her right foot. Initially it was expected she'd hit the track in the US in May. But she was unable to race there and then pulled out of scheduled events in Turin and Ostrava, in the Czech Republic, early last month. Last month, she had to take 10 days off training when the injury flared again. She did not make it back on the track until last week.

Rawlinson then competed at a meeting in Poland and finished second to Anna Jesien, bronze medallist in Osaka last year. She was to race in Rome tonight and Lucerne five days later.

Rawlinson is not the only big name in the 400m hurdles to pull out of the Olympics. World record holder Yuliya Pechonkina will not be there nor will this year's fastest, Lashinda Demus, who failed to make the US team. And Athens gold medallist Fani Halkia of Greece has raced only sparingly.

In early 2006, Rawlinson spoke about her image and how it almost drove her to live overseas. "Since Athens, my image is all about drama, and I hate it," she said.

Beijing was building up to be her calmest Olympic campaign yet. She even said in February she could see herself winning gold.

She "visualised" her Osaka and Paris world title wins; Beijing was also in her head. "I believe," she said then. "If you can cope with everything in your head, then you can deal with it on the track."

But now Rawlinson and Australia will have to keep on dreaming until London 2012.