Two-time Olympic gold medal winner Ashton Eaton has announced he is retiring from track and field.
The 28-year-old made the announcement via a statement on his website Wednesday.
"It’s my time to depart from athletics; to do something new. Frankly there isn’t much more I want to do in sport. I gave the most physically robust years of my life to the discovery and pursuit of my limits in this domain," Eaton's release read.
Eaton said he is ready for the next phase of his life, but hasn’t decided yet what he plans to do. Eaton did update his Twitter profile to say “Being the 1st person on Mars would be cool,” and singled out Elon Musk, founder of Space X, in his retirement statement as one of his inspirations.
The University of Oregon track star won gold in the decathlon at the 2012 London and 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games — as well as several world championships.
"To USA & Oregon; My birthplace Portland, my roots in La Pine and Bend, and the University of Oregon. I am a product of this environment. Thank you for fostering possibility," he said.
Eaton’s wife, Brianne Theisen-Eaton, also announced her retirement from track and field in the same statement. She says she reached a point of exhaustion in the sport after winning a bronze medal at the 2016 Olympics.
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