Luxembourg’s Vera Bertemes-Hoffmann has decided to retire from international athletics, according to a statement released by the national athletics federation (FLA) on Wednesday.
Over the course of her career, Bertemes-Hoffmann achieved several notable results, including an eighth-place finish in the 1,500m at a European championship, a silver medal at the World University Games, and a place on Luxembourg’s team for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
Bertemes-Hoffmann explained in a statement from the Luxembourg Athletics Federation (FLA) that she has known since the beginning of the year that this would be her final season at the highest level. She chose to share this decision only with her close circle, adding that she wanted to enjoy her last season not just for herself, but also to see what more she could achieve.
The middle-distance runner explains that if she had handled it differently, she would have become too emotional and would not have been able to deliver such strong performances.
Throughout her career, Bertemes-Hoffmann set national records over several distances, including two this year alone. On 4 January 2026, she set a new 10km national record at the Prom’Classic in Nice, clocking 33:37. She also ran 15:46 over 5km at the Route du Vin, another national best for that distance on the road.
In her final year competing internationally, Bertemes-Hoffmann represented Luxembourg at the World Indoor Championships in Torun, the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, and the World Road Running Championships in Copenhagen.
