Last spring, it was over. Tiril Eckhoff was single after 14 years. Now, the biathlon star opens up about her breakup with former cross-country skier – and what really happened.

After 14 years as a couple, ten years as cohabitants, and eventually engaged, Tiril Eckhoff and Ånund Lid Byggland abruptly ended their relationship in May 2025. 

Now, Eckhoff is speaking out about the breakup, describing how it hit her like a bolt from the blue. 

The former biathlon star shares that she felt hurt and sad, but also extremely surprised when her partner said, “You know, Tiril, maybe it’s time to call it a day.” 

“It was painful. I had just been dumped,” Eckhoff recounts in the podcast “Ida med hjerte i hånden,” and continues: 

“But I thought: “You really think we should end it now? I’m in the final stretch of my bachelor’s degree and dealing with a lot, and you choose to leave me?”

Kicked out and cleaned out

Afterward, Eckhoff quickly shifted into problem-solving mode and kicked Byggland out. 

“I wasn’t angry; I was extremely rational. I packed him out of the apartment, which I own. Boom, boom, get him out. I even had a woman come in to clean out the entire apartment afterward. And then I lost a bit of weight and had a real “glow up.”  

Now, Eckhoff says she is grateful he ended things. 

“I’m really glad he did, because I could have stayed in that relationship for a long time without realizing it wasn’t good,” she states.

Eckhoff is now in a new relationship. Last fall, she met Joakim Dokka Norstad, and in February, she shared pictures of them as a couple. The two quickly became cohabitants, and now the couple hopes to buy a home together. 

Remarkable career

During her 12 years on the World Cup circuit, Tiril Eckhoff achieved a great deal: she has 10 Olympic medals from three Winter Games (Sochi 2014, PyeongChang 2018, and Beijing 2022). She has 15 World Championship medals, including ten golds, from five different World Championships (Kontiolahti 2015, Oslo 2016, Östersund 2019, Antholz 2020, and Pokljuka 2021). 

The Bærum native also won the overall World Cup once (2020/2021) and has three small crystal globes in her trophy cabinet, along with 65 podium finishes in the World Cup, including 29 individual victories. 

Eckhoff secured her 29th World Cup victory when she won the pursuit race at Holmenkollen on March 19, 2022. This victory allowed her to surpass Tora Berger, becoming the most successful Norwegian woman in the World Cup in biathlon. On the same day, she was awarded the Holmenkollen Medal by King Harald.

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