European Report: Wiberg pays back taxes; biathlon legend announces retirement{mosimage}Retired alpine skier Pernilla Wiberg said Tuesday she has handed over a large chunk of her prize and sponsor money to the Swedish government because she doesn’t want to live as a “tax evader.”

The three-time Olympic medalist said she paid a 7.9 million kronor ($1 million) tax debt, which included a 40 percent penalty, on February 10 after losing an extended court battle with tax authorities.

A tax authority official confirmed the payment had been made.

“I don’t want to become a tax evader — I can’t live like that,” Wiberg said in a telephone interview with the Associated Press.

The debt stemmed from 1993 to 1996, when Wiberg channeled prize money and sponsor income to a firm on the British tax haven Isle of Man, which then paid her a salary, according to court documents.

Swedish tax authorities argued that money paid to the firm on Wiberg’s behalf should be considered her income and be taxed as such. Wiberg said her financial advisers had advocated the arrangement as an alternative to moving abroad, something Swedish sports stars often do to avoid the country’s taxes, which are among the world’s highest.

“They said it was better to do it like that than to be registered as a business, as I had been until then. At the time, I wasn’t ready to move abroad,” said Wiberg, who has lived in Monaco since 1995.

In November, the Administrative Court of Appeals refused to hear the case, forcing Wiberg to pay as ruled by a lower court. Wiberg described the court ruling as “unfair” and said it wasn’t based on evidence. She said she planned to appeal the penalty part of the payment in the European Court, and that she might demand compensation from her advisers.

Wiberg, the 1997 overall World Cup champion, retired from professional skiing in 2002 after 13 years on the World Cup circuit. Her achievements include a gold in the giant slalom at the 1992 Olympics, a gold in the combined in 1994 and a silver in the downhill in 1998.

Dorfmeister doubtful for Are

Austrian ski team officials said it’s still unknown whether Michaela Dorfmeister can start this weekend’s super G in Are, Sweden.

World super giant slalom champion sustained a concussion from a crash while training Monday also pulled ligaments in her right thumb and was briefly hospitalized.

The news agency DPA is reporting that the injuries are not as serious as previously expected following an exam in a hospital in Villach. Ski team officials said they will for a few days before making a decision about whether Dorfmeister, sitting fifth overall, will take the start in Sweden.

>> Schild delays comeback

Austrian gate specialist Marlies Schild, forced to skip the start at Region Arber, Germany, earlier this month with a bum knee, said she might not be able to return to racing until the World Cup Finals next month.

The 22-year-old had an operation to repair meniscus damage in her left knee after she felt pain while training for the Arber races. She’s scored four slalom podiums this season and sits second overall in the slalom standings, but likely won’t be back for two slaloms February 28 and 29 in Levi, Finland, as coaches had hoped.

“I’ve been working on rehabilitating the knee with gymnastics, swimming, knee stabilization and muscle strengthening to keep the knee strong,” she told Austrian national radio. “I hope to be in Finland but we have to wait to see how I feel. I begin training on the snow next week and might not be able to compete again until Sestrieres.”

>> Biathlete legend retires

Frank Luck, one of biathlon’s most successful performers, announced his retirement Tuesday in Germany.

The 36-year-old German won 13 world championship medals in his career, including seven golds, as well as 12 World Cup victories. He was also part of the Olympic gold medal winning relay teams in Nagano, Japan, and Lillehammer, Norway, and a two-time silver medalist in the 20km individual event.

There will be a farewell race for Luck in his hometown of Oberhof, site of the recent world championships, on June 12. Among the participants will be Ole-Einar Björndalen, Viktor Maigourov and Frank-Peter Rötsch.

>> Racing today: Cross-country men’s and women’s 1km sprint, qualifying and finals, Stockholm, Sweden.