The only female pole-vaulter to clear 5 meters decided to rest from athletics in April, but said on Friday she was preparing for a comeback.
“A break was necessary for me. I was under too much pressure,” Isinbayeva said. “But now I feel refreshed and motivated. I will be back for the 2011 winter season.” The Russian star had won all the major competitions since the 2004 Athens Olympics until last August in Berlin at the world championships, where she failed to clear a height.
Then at the world indoors in March in Qatar, she left without a medal, finishing fourth.
Despite the huge disappointments, she credited her failure to clear a height in Berlin with providing her with a fresh perspective.
“I really understood that to be a world champion is a huge moment,” said the two-time world champ.
Having won the last two Olympic gold medals, Isinbayeva said she was still determined to compete for a third successive gold at the 2012 London Games, and in next year's world champs.
“I'd like to continue in sport as long as possible,” the 28-year-old said.
In the meantime, she hasn't been impressed by the “normal life” she's sampled this year.
“Having competed all these years, I have missed on the normal life other young women live. Now that I've seen it, I can say that normal life is really boring,” she said.
Isinbayeva was in Ancient Olympia for the lighting ceremony of the Youth Olympics flame, attending as one of the event's IOC ambassadors.
