Nathalie Eklund Announces Retirement

Nathalie Eklund, nine-year member of the Swedish alpine national team has decided to end her alpine skiing career after a season involving three World Cup starts and a comeback from her second knee injury.

“I have had a dialogue with myself for a while on completing my career,” she said. “But one morning I woke up and felt I was done. I have struggled in a long uphill battle with two knee injuries close to each other, but I’ve also managed to get back both times and gave me the opportunity to make this decision myself and have no injuries forcing me to do that.”

Eklund has been on the national team since 2009 and has 54 World Cup starts, 7 Europa Cup podiums, 4 Swedish Championship medals, a silver in the team event from the World Championships in Schladming 2013, and an individual sixth-place finish in Are at the 2012 World Cup slalom.

“It’s been a good fortune to live the life I’ve lived,” she shared. “It’s not the performance itself, but the ones I’ve experienced and the people I’ve had around me and got to know along the way that I’ll remember most. Now I’ll collect my mind and renovate our house before I decide what the next step will be.”

Nathalie has been in the national team since 2009, and Chief Executive Officer Lars Melin says this about the decision:

“Nathalie has been an extreme competitor and achieved amazing results in the World Cup,” said Swedish Ski Federation CEO Lars Melin. “It has been a privilege to follow her closely. She has an experience and a personality that has been an asset for everyone in the team. I congratulate Nathalie with her civil career in the future and hope to meet her in any piste in the future.”

“It’s a tough decision to end something that’s been so much of my life, but even harder it is to try to thank everyone enough,” she added. “You feel incredibly grateful to all those who have always been there and supported, pepped and believed in me even while I have doubted.”

Release courtesy of the Swedish Ski Federation.