The 35-year-old, the gold medallist in the 15 kilometres individual event at the 2015 World Championships, said she would not be competing due to a "very pleasant surprise".

Yurlova-Percht said she had felt "weird" pain during a recent training session and consulted a doctor before learning she was pregnant.

"It is obvious that I will skip this season and I will see for the rest of my career later," she said.

"Sometimes life offers us very pleasant surprises, and today I am very happy. 

"I will focus on the happiness of my family and the health of my baby."

The 2020-2021 season will be the second Yurlova-Percht has missed because of pregnancy as she also skipped the 2016-2017 campaign to have her first child.

Yurlova-Percht won a silver medal in the 12.5km mass start race at the 2019 World Championships.

Her best overall result on the International Biathlon Union World Cup circuit came when she finished 13th in 2017-2018.