Stockholm, Sweden – Two veterans of the Audi FIS Alpine World Cup ski racing circuit separately on Monday announced their retirement for related, yet very different reasons.

Sweden’s Anja Paerson, a gold medal veteran of the 2006 Olympic Winter Games and seven-time World Champion in all five disciplines who has five other Olympic medals and two overall World Cup titles to her credit, said that she’s calling it quits because of a string of injuries. Austrian Mario Scheiber, on the other hand, says that his own set of injuries has left him without the nerve necessary to successfully compete on the World Cup tour.

“My career has been fantastic and I’ve achieved more than I could ever dream of,” said Paerson, 30, who specifically referenced injuries to her left knee. “The last years, with all the spectacular crashes and protracted injury problems, have reduced my chances to perform at the top level.

“I have always been a fighter and this is a tough decision, but after some time of thoughts and many discussions with myself I feel I’m ready for new challenges in my life.”

Scheiber, however, was more to the point, saying that he is “not willing to take the risks involved in ski racing anymore.” Scheiber’s recent injuries include both a nose and shoulder blade broken in a downhill training crash last year in Chamonix, France. The 29-year-old also missed the 2005-06 World Cup season completely after tearing ligaments in his left knee, and missed several months last season thanks to a left shoulder injury.