(Oslo) Norwegian cross-country skiing star Therese Johaug is returning to the sport after retiring two years ago, she announced on Wednesday.
The former Olympic, World Cup and World Championship winner has already been banned after testing positive for an anabolic agent listed in a sunburn treatment.
“I still feel like I have something to contribute on the slopes, and the desire to have a starting number on my chest is just as strong,” Johaug, 36, wrote on Instagram.
She plans to participate in the 2025 World Cup in Trondheim, Norway.
Johaug tested positive for the performance-enhancing drug clostebol in October 2016 and was suspended for 18 months, missing the 2018 Winter Olympics.
She returned to international competition at the World Cup in 2019.
Two years ago, she announced her retirement from elite cross-country skiing.
PHOTO ANTTI YRJONEN, ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
Therese Johaug, in February 2022.
She married Norwegian rower Nils Jakob Hoff and gave birth to a daughter on May 17, 2023.
“I didn’t stop because I was tired of training, but the desire to become a mother was so strong. Now I have a daughter and I’m doing absolutely wonderfully,” Johaug said at a press conference.
Johaug won a total of four Olympic gold medals in Vancouver 2010 and Beijing 2022, plus a silver and a bronze at the 2014 Games in Sochi.
She also won 14 gold medals at the World Championships.