The Swiss Alpine skier and member of the national team, Karin Roten Meier, has announced her retirement from competition at the age of 25. Roten Meier said she wanted to devote more time to her family.

In a decade-long career, Roten Meier has notched up two World Cup titles and three World Championship medals.

"I have decided to put my family first," said Roten Meier, who is married to professional cyclist Armin Meier and is the mother of a 13-month-old son.

The announcement of Roten Meier's retirement comes at the end of her first ski season after a one-year maternity break.

Her brief comeback proved not to be a great success, with the skier from canton Valais managing just 15th and 17th places in two World Cup slaloms. In the overall World Cup rankings she managed just 86th place.

"It's not easy to reconcile family life with high-level competition," Roten Meier said. "I could not go on for long at that pace, but I don't regret having attempted a comeback."

Roten Meier made her World Cup debut in 1993, when at age 16 she took the junior world champion title. In 1996 she won silver in the giant slalom event at the Sierra Nevada World Championship and a year later at Sestrières took silver again in the giant slalom and bronze in the slalom.

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