Athletes often retire young, and the transition from sport can be challenging. These four athletes thought they were ready to throw in the towel, but ended up “un-retiring” and coming back better than ever.

For Olympic athletes, going for gold can mean going broke as they shell out thousands of dollars for elite coaching and equipment, and forgo employment to train around the clock. Some athletes have reported relying on food stamps, racking up credit card debt and even crowdfunding to make ends meet. The US Olympic and Paralympic Committee announced a new financial support program on Wednesday aimed to help athletes with this issue. The Stevens Financial Security Awards will provide athletes $100,000 over a four-year period following their retirement from Olympic competition.

Indiana University standout swimster Lexi Looze retired from competitive swimming to pursue a master’s degree in speech pathology at MGH Institute of Health Professions. She won 3-straight PAC-12 Championships in the 100 breaststroke and was a multiple-time NCAA finalist.

The Washington Commanders will retire Hall of Fame wide receiver Art Monk’s number 81 this season. Monk played 13 seasons in the NFL and was a two-time All-Pro and a three-time Pro Bowler with the Chiefs and Cardinals.

Despite all the benefits of a successful career as a professional athlete, many struggle to identify with anything else than their sport after retiring. Researchers have identified that this identity dissonance may lead to negative mental health outcomes in former athletes. To address this issue, the USOC and RBC Wealth Management-U.S. partnered to develop the pilot of More Than Sport, an online program for retired elite athletes that includes interviews with former athletes and interactive activities focusing on identity change. The program is being expanded to a larger trial with recruitment currently underway for athletes from Australia, the United Kingdom and Belgium.