Dec 22, 2006, 20:08 GMT
Colorado Springs, CO - Defending United States Figure Skating champion Sasha Cohen has decided to withdraw from the 2007 national championships, but said she is not retiring.
Cohen said she needed to take a break from competition, but plans a return to the ice to make a run at Olympic gold at the 2010 Games in Vancouver.
'These past few years have been incredibly intense and demanding, so I need a little downtime from competing,' Cohen said in a release by the U.S. Figure Skating Association. 'I have competed in two Olympics, and there's nothing as thrilling as that, so I know I want to be in Vancouver for the 2010 Olympics.'
Cohen won the 2006 U.S. crown last January in St. Louis, then captured a silver medal at the Torino Olympics in February. She followed that up with a bronze medal at the World Championships in March.
'I have every intention of competing in future competitions,' Cohen added. 'My major goals are the 2009 World Figure Skating Championships in Los Angeles and the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver. I love the thrill that competition brings, and I'm not ready to give that up. But I'm the type of person who is all or nothing. When I train and compete, it's my life. I can't be there just to be there. These past few months, I've really enjoyed skating simply for the love of it.'
This year's U.S. Figure Skating Championships will take place from January 21-28 in Spokane, Washington.
© 2006 The Sports Network
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