The 28-year-old said he had come to a "mutual decision" with pairs partner Ksenia Stolbova, according to International Figure Skating Magazine.

It comes after the duo were barred from competing at the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea in February amid the Russian doping crisis.

"This was our mutual decision," Klimov said. 

"The reasons are different for everyone. 

"At the moment I do not continue sports activities, but I reserve the right to return to figure skating after a while, if such a desire arises.

"As for my plans, I have recently tried myself in different directions.

"Naturally, they are connected with figure skating. 

"I will try coaching, take part in different seminars, and masterclasses.

"Of course, there is a feeling of regret, but I do not think that it would be better for me now to continue my sports career in the way in which it evolved in recent seasons."

Klimov won team gold at his home Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics and then pairs silver with Stolbova.

However, his partner was among Russian athletes barred from Pyeongchang by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), even though they had never been sanctioned for taking banned drugs.

They all failed to pass the scrutiny of an IOC panel, which had been vetting each individual application to compete as part of the neutral "Olympic Athletes from Russia" team at Pyeongchang 2018.

A bid to have this decision overturned at the Court of Arbitration for Sport failed on the eve of the Games.