Former world champion ice
skater Carolina Kostner on Thursday said she would return to
competitive skating in September after recently completing a ban
for helping ex-boyfriend and former Olympic race walk champ Alex
Schwazer dodge drug tests.
"I've talked to my team and we've decided to stage the
comeback in September, I need more time," said Kostner, 28.
"I feel light and serene but coming back earlier would
have been premature", she said.
Kostner returned to competition provisionally last month,
coming second in the Medal Winners Open in Osaka, Japan.
The Olympic bronze-medal winner in 2014 got 59.69 points,
12 less than Canada's Joannie Rochette.
At the time the results was seen as serving her in good
stead in the race to qualify for the world championships in
Boston in March.
Kostner is also aiming to take part in the next Olympics
at Pyeongchang, South Korea in 2018.
The 2012 world champion and five-time European champ was
cleared in October to restart this year by the Court of
Arbitration for Sport following a 16-month suspension for
helping Schwazer evade doping checks.
Kostner reportedly admitted making a mistake when she
helped the Olympic 2008 race-walking gold medallist skirt a
doping test. She has always maintained that she did not know he
was doping.
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