Other Sports: Alpine skiing-Norwegian Braathen ends retirement to race for Brazil

(Reuters) – Norway’s former Alpine skiing World Cup slalom champion Lucas Braathen announced on Thursday that he was coming out of retirement to race for Brazil and compete for future world and Olympic medals.

The 23-year-old, who has a Brazilian mother and Norwegian father, retired surprisingly last October on the eve of the current World Cup season after disagreement with the Norwegian Ski Association.

“I am returning to the sport of Alpine ski racing and I’m doing that representing the country where I discovered my love for sports, which is Brazil,” the five times World Cup race winner told a press conference at Red Bull’s Hanger-7 in Salzburg, Austria.

“I’m beyond proud to be able to represent them in World Cups, world championships and Olympic Games,” added the Oslo-born skier who is also renowned for his colourful clothing and painted nails.

Brazil has never won a medal at any Winter Olympics since making its debut in 1992.

“The time has come, Brazil. Let’s dance,” he posted in Portuguese on Instagram.

Braathen said last October, when he left after reported disputes over image rights, that he felt free for the first time in years and was following his dreams.

“At the time it felt very far-fetched to at all return to the sport,” he told the press conference.

“Obviously everyone knows that I am half-Brazilian. So everyone knows that option was there ever since I did enter the World Cup … but that was not a part of the decision making of when and why I did what I did.

“At the time I did not think that I would return to the sport.”

The next Alpine world championships are in Saalbach-Hinterglemm next year and Braathen said he wanted to establish himself as quickly as possible.

“Coming into the first championship with a Brazilian flag on my back is something that I am very proud and eager to make happen,” he said.

Braathen, who has an apartment in Austria near the Atomic ski factory, hoped as many as possible of his Norwegian fans “would like to support me for the person that I am and not necessarily only based off the flag that I represent.”

He said the split with Norwegian federation had been on friendly terms.

(Reporting by Alan Baldwin in London, editing by Ken Ferris)