OSLO – Two-time Olympic champion and ten-time world champion Norwegian Tiril Eckhoff is another elite biathlete who is saying goodbye to her professional career.
The thirty-two-year-old competitor missed the entire current season due to the consequences of covid and announced her decision to quit on Instagram. In addition to the successes at the top events, she also dominated the overall ranking of the World Cup in the 2020/21 season.
Eckhoff joined compatriot Marta Olsbu Röiseland, German Denise Herrmann and French Anais Chevalier-Bouchet, who in the past days before the final competition weekend of the SP in Oslo announced that they would also stop racing after the season.
“Biathlon has been a part of my life almost forever, and it’s strange to imagine life without it,” Eckhoff said on the website of the Norwegian Biathlon Union. “I’ve been a bit sidelined for the last year, so it feels like a natural development and decision. It’s strange and a little sad. But it’s also beautiful in a way.” she added.
Eckhoff already admitted the end of her career in a February interview for the Norwegian NRK television. After overcoming the coronavirus, unlike Olsbu Röiseland, she was unable to return to competitive action this season. She was most troubled by sleep problems and is under the supervision of medical specialists.
In addition to two Olympic triumphs from mixed relays, Eckhoff also won three silver and three bronze medals “under five rings”. Of the total ten gold medals at the World Championships, she won three in individual races. In total, he has fifteen precious metals from the world championships.
Tiril Eckhoff is the next World and Total Score Champion to say goodbye this week.
What an incredible privilege it’s been to watch you at your best over so many years.
— BMW IBU World Cup Biathlon (@IBU_WC) March 15, 2023
The last time Eckhoff appeared in a race was last year at home in Oslo, where she won the sprint and pursuit races. “I didn’t know at the time that these would be my last biathlon wins. My plan was to keep going. But now that I’m leaving, I say to myself that I ended it with two triumphs in front of a fantastic audience, friends and my family.
I’m sad about the end, but at the same time I know it’s the right decision. I am proud of what I have achieved and I will always remember my career with a smile.” added Eckhoff.
- Author: © List
- Instagram/tirileckhoff; Twitter/BMW IBU World Cup Biathlon
- Source: CTK
