"It was the right thing to do. It was not based on emotion, but thoroughly considered", the 28-year-old said to the Austrian newspaper "Kronen Zeitung."

The 2006 Olympic Champion is now focusing on a few different projects in order to make sure he won't get bored also without the pressure of elite sports. Besides his goal to get the professional pilots license for helicopters, Thomas Morgenstern will also participate in the helicopter World Championships in Poland in August. "I will compete in the rookie category with 250 hours of flying time. I'm looking forward to experiencing competition again. That's how we athletes are, somehow you just need that."

Currently the Carinthian is also working on a book with the title "Ueber meinen Schatten" ("Over my own shadow"), that shall be released late September. "It is not a classic biography, it reads more like a novel. But it was important to come to terms with certain issues."