Surprising end! Biathlon star announces the end of her career

Stockholm (Sweden) - She was considered one of the great hopes of the biathlon, won the IBU Cup in 2022/23 and was set to take off in the World Cup, but now it's over! Tilda Johansson is ending her career at the age of just 25.

In March 2023, Tilda Johansson (25) won the IBU Cup, but a little later the fire for biathlon was no longer burning in her.
In March 2023, Tilda Johansson (25) won the IBU Cup, but a little later the fire for biathlon was no longer burning in her.  © IMAGO / Harald Deubert

The Swede announced on"Radiosporten" that she no longer sees the sport with skis and rifle as her job, but that it has become more of a hobby for her.

"I had hoped that I would be on the starting line, but when the competitions came, there was no fire left," she explains her surprising withdrawal.

In the summer, it still looked as if Johansson would take her chances in the World Cup this winter. At the summer World Championships, she was in the Swedish line-up and finished eleventh in the mass start.

The winter before that, after winning the IBU Cup, she was allowed to compete in the World Cups in Östersund and Hochfilzen.

However, the results were not what she and the Swedish coaches had hoped for, so she will be competing in the IBU Cup again in Martell.

Biathlon: Tilda Johansson finds honest words about the reasons for her retirement

In Östersund and Hochfilzen she was allowed to compete in the World Cup last season, but the results were not satisfactory for her and the team.
In Östersund and Hochfilzen she was allowed to compete in the World Cup last season, but the results were not satisfactory for her and the team.  © IMAGO / TT

In January 2024, Tilda Johansson then announced on Instagram that she needed to take a break from biathlon.

"I have tried, but have come to the conclusion that now is the time to act. I will therefore be taking an indefinite break from biathlon to find myself again," she wrote at the time.

Even then, she noted that "this industry is not the best for me" and that it was "heartbreaking because I love biathlon".

The fire then flared up again very briefly in the summer, but now there is clearly no way back for the Swede.

"I feel incredibly good today. I've never felt as good as I did last year. I've really found myself. I don't think top sport and top training is for everyone, and it wasn't for me either. It was just too much," she says honestly about her reasons for leaving.

In her free time, she will remain faithful to biathlon, but it is with great relief that she will watch the IBU and World Cup circus on TV at weekends.