German cross-country skier Victoria Carl is preparing to return to competition after serving an 18-month doping suspension that forced her to miss the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy. The 31-year-old Olympic champion takes full responsibility for the positive test, even though the military doctor who administered the medication has apologized to her.
The Path Back Through the FIS Cup in Gålå
Carl’s suspension officially concludes on November 25, 2025. She plans to immediately enter second-tier FIS Cup races to accumulate the necessary points required for a return to the World Cup circuit. Her comeback is scheduled to begin on November 27, 2025, in Gålå. Before heading to the starting line, Carl joined a training camp in Muonio, Finland, following her departure from training isolation in late September.
“It feels like a second chance, and I want to use it,” Carl said during a German Ski Association media round. “I have worked toward this second chance for a year and a half. The sport has helped me to forgive myself. To forgive myself for not checking doubly and triply.”
A Prescription Administered at the Military World Winter Games
The positive test stemmed from a check in the spring of 2025, following the conclusion of a successful World Cup season where Carl finished second in the overall standings. Laboratory results detected clenbuterol, a prohibited substance primarily used to treat respiratory illnesses.
Records show that on March 26, 2025, following her final race at the Winter Military World Games in Andermatt, a Bundeswehr military doctor administered Spasmo Mucosolvan to treat an acute spastic bronchitis. As a sports soldier, Carl took the medication under official medical direction.
At the time of the positive finding, the German Ski Association released a statement noting that Carl was ill, suffered from severe coughing fits, and followed instructions without knowing the medication contained a banned substance. The leading medical officer for the military competition acknowledged that the prescription was medically understandable but organizationally flawed, stating that the athlete bore no blame and acted in good faith within an official military sports environment. Despite these findings, the regulatory penalty was upheld.
Accepting Responsibility Despite an Apology
As the ban kept her out of the buildup to the 2026 Winter Games—where she would have entered as Germany’s biggest hope in cross-country skiing following her 2022 team sprint gold in Beijing alongside Katharina Hennig—Carl expressed severe frustration with her own reliance on medical staff.
“He has apologized to me,” Carl said regarding the military doctor, while immediately emphasizing her own oversight. “Nothing would have happened if I had checked again, as is my duty. I was simply blue-eyed, naive, I had too much trust, because we are used to our team doctor having a precise overview of what we are allowed to take and what not. Something like that will never happen to me again.”
Uninterrupted Testing During Isolation
Throughout the 18-month ban, during which she trained in isolation away from the national team, Carl remained subject to regular anti-doping controls. Testing yielded no further irregularities before or after the initial positive sample.
“I am clean,” Carl said. “I have trained hard and I do not use illegal means for it.”
Regarding her long-term athletic future, including whether the 2030 Winter Olympics in France might become a target after missing the events in Italy, Carl adopted a measured approach. “I don’t want to rule that out,” she said. “But I’m taking each year as it comes now.”
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