Olympic champion Lizzy Yarnold takes year out from skeleton

Olympic skeleton champion Lizzy Yarnold has decided to take a season-long break from competing.

The 26-year-old, who won gold for Great Britain at last year's Winter Olympics in Sochi, will miss the forthcoming World Cup campaign.

"It will be hard to watch others compete without me, but I really feel like this is the right time for me to refresh, take stock and come back even more motivated for the future," said Yarnold.

Yarnold is still keen on defending her Olympic title at the next Games in Pyeongchang in 2018, and if she does so she will become the first slider and the first British Winter Olympian to achieve the feat.