On the eve of the new Alpine ski season, the reigning World Cup slalom champion from Norway, Lucas Braathen, announced that he would retire at 23. He stated that he felt free for the first time in years after making the decision.
“I am retiring. I informed my team mates yesterday,” the winner of five World Cup races told reporters in the Austrian resort of Soelden, where he won the first race of his career in a giant slalom in 2020. Soelden was the location of his first victory in his career.
It’s over for me. I am the type of person who has always pursued their own goals and ambitions since they are the things that bring them the most joy…for the first time in at least half a year, I am glad as a result of making this decision. After a lifetime, I finally have a sense of independence.
“I’m going to go on my little journey on my own now to try to find out what my next journey is, and I’m so excited for that,” added the skier, who has a Brazilian mother and caught the attention with his painted nails and colorful attire. He also drew attention to himself by having his nails painted and wearing brightly colored clothing.
His fellow citizens were taken aback by the information, which came after it was known that the skier had disagreed with the Norwegian federation about image rights.
“I received word of Lucas’s decision just before the press conference began, and this came as a complete surprise to both me and the rest of the support team,” the Norwegian Alpine sports director Claus Johan Ryste was cited as saying by Eurosport. “This came as a complete surprise to both me and the rest of the support team.”
The first race of the season, a giant slalom for women, will take place in Soelden on Saturday, followed by a race for men on Sunday.
