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JOIN US BEHIND THE SCENES OF AXELSEN’S WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS VICTORY On August 27 this year, Viktor Axelsen gained a place in the Danish history books as he won the men’s singles at the World Championships. The first Dane to win the title in 20 years. Let us go two months back in time to have a chat with two of the persons who were closest to Axelsen in the 24 hours leading up to the victory – physiotherapist Michael Riis and the Danish national coach Kenneth Jonassen. BY K R I S T I N E L I V L U N D - P E D E R S E N
He turns around with a look of almost disbelief on his face. It’s as if the reality is having a hard time sinking in. But the reality is that Viktor Axelsen has just become world champion. He has beaten the legendary Lin Dan in two sets and, in a short time after, he will step up onto the top step on the podium. But what was it that led to this victory? What steps were taken to ensure he was as physically strong as possible? And what tactics were used?
MICHAEL RIIS
physiotherapist for Team Danmark:
Viktor and I know each other really well, and if there is any kind of problem, then he comes to me. He had
some small issues with his foot and lower back in the run-up to the World Championships, so we looked at these after the semi-final. If there are small things that are bothering a player, then these can start to affect them mentally and lead to frustration, so we did a check-up of his whole body and made sure that he was completely rested. It’s important that he feels comfortable with the treatments I make, and we make all our decisions together. We do it as a team. I was in no doubt that he was physically ready for the final. Although, he was naturally quite tired. I think we succeeded in achieving a relaxed atmosphere and a good mood, and things did not get too intense even though it was the World Championships final the next day. On the day of the final we ate breakfast together and he had some treatment from me in the morning,