The 37-year-old made his debut back in 2002 in Innsbruck and claimed two World Cup victories during his career.

Both triumphs came in the Japanese city Sapporo, where Matura succeeded on back-to-back days back in January 2013.

The ski jumper also impressed at the Nordic World Championships in Val di Fiemme during the same year, placing fifth in the large hill competition.

“During these years, I had the chance to meet many great, interesting people, exceptional athletes, coaches and fans,” said Matura on his Facebook page.

“I could gain countless experiences, had many ups and downs and learned a lot about life.

“In some competitions, I could beat all the big names of ski jumping, like Schlierenzauer, Malysz, Stoch, Ammann or Ahonen (Sorry guys, but it always made my day).

"The biggest thanks goes to my family, my wife Veronika, my kids, Dukla Liberec, the club in Lomnice nad Popelkou, Czech team, jumpers, coaches, officials, volunteers and everybody who supported me in all those years.”

Matura had begun his career on the Czech Nordic Combined team, which he helped to a fourth place finish at the 1997 Nordic World Ski Championships in Trondheim, Norway.

While the 37-year-old will not compete in the winter season, he is planning to bring his career to a close by participating in a small number of summer events.

This will include the Continental Cup in Frenstat and the Czech national championships.