Sydney  - Olympic swimming champion Libby Trickett is taking an extended break from the sport and is considering retiring, she said Wednesday in a statement issued by her management company.

In the statement quoted in Australian media, the 24-year-old, who has three Olympic gold medals as well as nine world championship gold medals to her name, said that retirement was something she was contemplating.

"I am having a break at the moment and retirement is on my mind, but it is not something that I have confirmed," she said.

"I firmly believe that you have to retire to something, not from something. I hopefully have another 50 years on the planet. I love swimming and everything it has done for me. I will see where my head is at in a few months."

Trickett failed to win a gold medal at the recent world championships in Rome, even though she swam a person best in the 100m freestyle.

She won bronze behind Germany's Britta Steffen and Britain's Fran Halsall. She also won a bronze in the 4x100m freestyle relay and a silver medal in the 4x100m medley relay.

Trickett, who formerly competed under her maiden name Lenton, also considered retirement after she competed at the Beijing Olympics, but then decided instead to leave Brisbane and move to Sydney, where she trained under Grant Stoelwinder.(dpa)