Swiss Cross-Country skier Seraina Mischol retires from active skiing due to health reasons. In the fall Seraina Mischol complained of mysterious eye problems. The diagnosis of CIS was a serious blow for the successful Cross-Country skier. She knew from the beginning that it would be difficult to balance professional sports and MS. Five months have passed since the diagnosis and Seraina Mischol has always been confident the project can be successful.
Despite the positive attitude she has to give up her goal. "For several weeks I have felt a strange tiredness that forces me to pause repeatedly. The head is still set for elite sport, but my body is suffering, when it should do what my mind wants from it," Mischol said. In order not to lose the joy of Cross-Country skiing she no longer wants to endure the conflict. "I want to become one with my body and stop overloading it," she explained.
Although the decision was difficult to make, Seraina is fully behind it. She can look back at a wonderful career and can be proud of what she has achieved. In 2001 she claimed bronze medal at the Junior World Ski Championships and in 2003 she became U23 World Champion. She took part in five FIS World Ski Championships (the best result is 14th place in the classical sprint in Sapporo, 2007) and participated in the Olympic Winter Games in Torino 2006, when she was 15th over 10km classic. In FIS Tour de Ski 2007/08 she finished in 12th place overall, the best result ever of a Swiss lady. In the 2007/08 season she won 502 World Cup points, which brought her to 15th place in the Overall World Cup standing. Last but not least, Seraina Mischol won the Engadin Ski Marathon in 2009 and became five-fold Swiss champion.
In spite of everything Seraina Mischol is looking forward to the life after professional sport. She will focus on her beloved job as house designer and will move from Davos to her new home at the Lake Thun in Oberhofen. She will continue Cross-Country skiing with much joy, but without any pressure. She also wants to invest more time into her new hobby, which is telemark skiing.
Press release Engaind Ski Marathon Team
