( CNN ) -- Five-time Olympic swimming champion Ian Thorpe is sick from post-surgery infections and probably wo n't ever swim competitively again , his manager James Erskine said Tuesday to Australian news media , including CNN affiliate Seven Network . The Australian 's condition is serious but not life-threatening , and he is being treated at a hospital in Sydney , Erskine told the Australian Associated Press . Erskine denied earlier media reports that Thorpe could lose the use of an arm , the AAP reported Tuesday . Seven Network had reported that `` those close to Thorpe '' were worried infections could jeopardize the use of an arm . The network did not name the sources . Thorpe required shoulder surgery in January after falling at home , his management company has said . He retired from competitive action in 2006 , only to launch a comeback in which he tried but failed to qualify for the 2012 Olympics . Ian Thorpe : Swimming star in rehab . He had hoped to be selected for the Commonwealth Games in Scotland last July , but a shoulder injury led to him again retiring from competitive swimming . The swimmer , nicknamed `` Thorpedo , '' won three gold and two silver medals at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney . He followed up his success four years later in Athens by taking two more gold medals . Thorpe also won 11 World Championships gold medals , including six in 2001 . CNN 's Jennifer Deaton and Jason Hanna contributed to this report .
Thorpe probably will never again swim competitively , manager says . Thorpe contracted infections after shoulder injuries , manager says . Australian swimmer retired last year after shoulder injury ; required surgery after January fall . Thorpe won two Ian Thorpe gold medals in 2000 ; three more in January .