An investigation has been launched after a South Korean athlete with cerebral palsy accused his coach of abusing him at the London Paralympic Games earlier this month.

The unnamed athlete also said the coach had taken money from him to pay for training sessions, the Yonhap News Agency said, adding that prosecutors in Incheon were investigating the reports.

"During the Paralympics, the coach one night returned home drunk and hammered the athlete's head with a light stand," the athlete's aide told Yonhap.

"He has been abusing him frequently since 2010. The athlete is ranked number one in the world but couldn't win a medal because of injuries he sustained from the coach's abuse."