Ski ace has abruptly ended his career.

“Thank you, that's it”: Strange resignation in the Ski World Cup

This weekend, the first World Cup slaloms of the season are scheduled to take place in Levi. There was an unusual withdrawal beforehand.

16 November 2024

From: det

Nella Korpio is not exactly a household name among the general public in the skiing world, after all her career has been fairly unspectacular so far. Korpio comes from Finland, took part in one World Championship, was in the World Cup starting gate 15 times and scored points a handful of times. But now the Scandinavian has caused a stir - with her abrupt retirement at the age of 25.

"Thank you, that's it," wrote the slalom specialist on Instagram. This is strange because she announced her retirement immediately before her home race in Levi and in a way surprised herself. "On Sunday I was still a racer preparing to open the season. And now I'm retired."

Nella Korpio announced her retirement from skiing. © AFP / FABRICE COFFRINI

What is behind this abrupt end? "Three weeks ago I would never have expected this. I trained well in the summer and the preparation went perfectly. I felt stronger on the skis than I have in five years. But last week everything took a sudden turn," said Nella Korpio.

The injury escalates

The Finn goes into detail: "All of a sudden, my long-standing back problems escalated. The problems are nothing new to me and with a little creativity and patience I have managed to get them under control in recent years. But the recent change has made it impossible for me to reach the physical level that would be necessary for professional skiing. No matter how much patience or pain resistance I have, my body simply can no longer train at that level."

Check out this post on Instagram

A post shared by Nella Korpio (@nellakorpio)

And so it quickly became clear to Nella Korpio that she wanted to call it a day. "The decision was unexpected. But for me it's now time to move on," said the young Scandinavian. So when the slalom elite compete in Levi on Saturday from 11 a.m., the young local hero will be a spectator at best.