DES MOINES — Former Olympic gold medalist and WWE star Kurt Angle says he is pulling out of next week’s U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Iowa.

The 43-year-old Angle was planning on competing for a spot on the U.S. freestyle team headed to the London Games this summer. But Angle says on his Twitter page that hamstring and knee injuries forced him to pull out of the trials.

Angle has been involved with professional wrestling since winning gold in Atlanta in 1996.

Cael Sanderson, the 32-year-old Penn State wrestling coach who won gold at the Athens Games eight years ago, said this week that he is also dropping plans to win a spot on the U.S. team.