The England team has withdrawn from the World Badminton Championships in India because of "a specific terrorist threat" made by extremists.

The championships are being played in the city of Hyderabad.

The eight-strong squad pulled out of the tournament, which starts on Monday, following reports of a threat by the Muslim extremist group Lashkar-e-Taiba.

Badminton England chief executive Adrian Christy said it was "an incredibly tough decision".

He added: "After the Olympic Games, this is the most prestigious championships in the world but we were not prepared to risk the safety of our players, coaches and staff in what we felt could have been a very volatile environment."

Mr Christy said the team, which included Olympic silver medallist Nathan Robertson, had "carefully considered" information from local police authorities.

And after taking advice from the Foreign Office and British High Commission, the conclusion made by Badminton England was "that safety is of paramount importance," he added.

Performance director Ian Moss said: "It is a disappointing outcome, especially after we had enjoyed a very good preparation at our holding camp in Doha, Qatar, last week.

"Our athletes were extremely well prepared for these championships but, at the end of the day, personal safety must take priority over performance.

"This was a unanimous squad decision and is not reflective of the efforts made by the organising committee to create the safest environment possible for all athletes."

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