Therese Johaug was banned for 18 months for testing positive for Klostebol in the fall of 2016. It caused the multiple Olympic and world champion to miss the 2017 World Championships in Lathis and the 2018 Olympics in PyeongChang.
- I have experienced the greatest thing an athlete can achieve, but also the worst, says Johaug.
Would bake cinnamon buns
The day she received the doping notice, she was with her boyfriend Nils Jakob Hoff in an apartment in Holemkollen.
They were going to make cinnamon buns on cinnamon bun day and the roommate was on his way to the grocery store to buy ingredients.
- Nothing could beat the joy of finally being together again, Johaug reads from the book.
Johaug had forgotten to write cardamom on the list that Hoff was supposed to act on.
When she picked up the phone to report the miss, she saw that there were missed calls from the then national team manager Vidar Løfshus and messages from Anti-Doping Norway.
"Must have sent to the wrong person"
"Positive test result," said the message Johaug clicked on.
- The body stiffened, but the panic didn't really grab me right away.
My first thought was that this was a misunderstanding.
They must have sent the wrong message to the wrong person.
A urine sample from September 16 contained Klostebol, which was on that list of banned substances.
When she then saw herself in the mirror, the screams came.
- When I met my own gaze, the howl came.
I just stood there frozen in terror staring at myself in the mirror and screaming.
The Norwegian came back from the suspension for the WC in Seefeld 2019 and won three golds.
After winning three Olympic golds in 2022, she chose to end her career.