Russian Gold Medalist Figure Skater Yulia Lipnitskaya Retires at 19

The mother of Russian figure skater Yulia Lipnitskaya said Monday that the 19-year-old has retired from the sport.

According to TASS news agency (h/t BBC Sport), she said the Olympic gold medalist underwent treatment for anorexia.                  

Lipnitskaya helped lead Russia to team gold at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, at 15 years of age, making her the youngest Russian gold medalist ever.

In addition to winning gold in the team event, Lipnitskaya finished fifth in the singles event at the Sochi Games.

The 2014 season was a banner year for Lipnitskaya, as she won individual gold at the European Championships and individual silver at the World Championships.

Her performance level dropped off in subsequent years, though, including a seventh-place finish at the 2016 Russian Championships, resulting in her being only an alternate for the 2016 European Championships.

Per TASS news agency, reigning individual Olympic gold medalist Adelina Sotnikova will also miss the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, for Russia because of an undisclosed injury.