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Interview – Sarah Sjöström
E X C L U S I V E I N T E R V I E W W I T H S A R A H S J Ö S T R Ö M
Sarah Sjöström is the first Swedish woman to win an Olympic gold medal in swimming. At the age of 14, she won gold in the European championships and made her Olympic debut in Beijing. At 15, she broke her first world record. Now 27, Sjöström boasts 67 international podium honours for Sweden and holds six current world records, but a recent freak accident threatens her winning streak. By Kajsa Norman
When she first started, Sarah didn’t much care for swimming. “I started swimming when I was nine or ten years old after changing schools,” she remembers.
A friend at her new school practiced the sport so Sarah tagged along, but after a few sessions she wanted to quit. She didn’t like getting water in her googles and thought the water was too cold, preferring to stay in the showers.
“But my parents had already paid the fee for the semester, so they told me I had to keep going,” she recalls.
As the weeks rolled on, she started making more friends and having fun. And soon the sport itself also became enjoyable.
“The thing I love about swimming is that it’s easy to see progress. The pool is always the same distance, so it makes it easy to measure improvement.”
When other parents expressed awe at Sarah’s speed, her mother started writing down her times and encouraged her to compete against herself.
“That’s one of the things I enjoyed; going to competitions and beating my own personal bests,” says Sarah.
And she progressed at mind-blowing rates. Just four years after taking up the sport, 14-year old Sarah was European 100m butterfly champion, having beaten some of the world’s fastest adult swimmers.
In 2016, Sjöström won an Olympic gold in 100m butterfly in Rio, setting a new world record of 55.48 seconds in the process.
“There was a lot of pressure coming into that competition and I didn’t know if I’d be able to handle it. It was hard. My legs were shaking on the block, but I’m super proud of the outcome and how I handled all of it,” says Sjöström who also secured a silver medal and a bronze medal in the same Olympics.
Knowing that she performed her best race ever under that kind of pressure helps her look to the future with
E X C L U S I V E I N T E R V I E W W I T H S A R A H S J Ö S T R Ö M
confidence as she now faces the toughest challenge of her career.
In February, just five months before the Tokyo Olympics, Sjöström slipped on a patch of ice and fractured her elbow. She had to undergo surgery and was told she wouldn’t be allowed in the pool for about 12 weeks.
When the Swedish Press catches up with her, she is at a training camp in France, racing against the clock to rebuild her strength in time for the Tokyo Olympics:
How are you feeling? Have you recovered from your injury?
“I couldn’t use my arm for ten weeks or so, so I lost a lot of muscle mass. It will take a while before I’m 100 percent recovered, but I’m getting stronger every day. I’m still not swimming butterfly, but I try to focus on the progress, on all the things that are working well.”
Have you had to adjust your goals?
“It doesn’t matter that I broke my elbow and haven’t competed since 2019, the expectations on me will still be high. If I come away with two medals from a World Championship, that’s not enough because people are used to me winning five medals every time I race. I want to go to the Olympics and surprise myself but obviously the preparation has been more challenging now. 100m freestyle will be my main event. 100m butterfly will be a bonus if things start to work closer to the Olympics.”
You’ve been a dominant force in the world of swimming for over a decade? What’s the secret to remaining the best for so long?
“Dedication and a little bit of talent, I guess. Anyone can train hard, but you need to be professional about everything else as well, like recovery. It’s important to be able to turn off
Sarah with her five medals from the World Championship 2019. Photo: Jessica Gow/TT Sarah Sjöström in her favorite place – the swimming pool. Photo: GianMattia D’Alberto/ LaPresse. your brain a bit and do other things when you’re not in the pool. When I need to work hard, I work really, really hard. I’m not scared to race and to challenge myself. It doesn’t matter how much pressure I have from the outside, I keep making things harder for myself all the time, keep adding more events. That makes me tougher. Maybe that’s why I’ve been on top for so long.”
The pandemic has been tough on many athletes. What has the past year been like for you?
“It has been okay for me because I have been swimming for so many years. This was my first break ever from big meets. It was kind of like a break from racing without having to watch my competitors race. It wasn’t a disaster for me, but it would have been if it had happened when I was younger, in the beginning of my career. It would have been devastating.
Competitions were more important as a motivator when I was younger.”
How do you feel about the Olympics going ahead in the midst of a pandemic? Are you concerned about your health?
“I have antibodies so I think I will be okay. I don’t know when I had it [COVID-19], but I know I have antibodies after a few tests. My partner was sick recently and I didn’t get sick when he was sick. I think a lot of the athletes in the village will be vaccinated. Maybe not the Swedes, but most others.”
The Swedish Olympic Committee recently announced they would turn down the organizer’s offer of vaccines for their athletes as they don’t believe it’s right to prioritize athletes. How do you feel about that?
“It’s strange, of course. We’re only about 150 athletes and coaches. It wouldn’t be that hard to vaccinate us. But it is what it is. I hope that we will get through it without any COVID cases. Maybe we will get our first dose before we go, we’ll see, at least our older athletes. That way we don’t risk infecting anyone in the risk group on our return.”
In Japan, public opinion is decidedly against hosting the games. Are you concerned they could still be cancelled?
“At the moment I’m training like the Olympics will happen and we’ll see if they happen or not. I think they will go ahead. Last year, the organizers didn’t know how to hold events in a safe way, but now they do.”
If competitions occur without spectators, do you think that might affect your performance?
“It’s quite cool to win a gold in front of a big audience, but I know that I’ve been able to race really well in training without anyone in the stands, so I know I can do it. I can race anywhere, anytime. With or without audience, I will be ready in time – that’s my mindset.”
What are your plans for the future? What’s the next challenge once the Olympics are over?
“It will be a busy season because a lot of competitions were postponed. I’m hoping that the International Swimming League will happen. It’s
Sarah Sjöström celebrating one of her world records. Photo: SIPA USA
similar to Champions League but for swimmers, with 10 to 12 different teams competing. The teams are international with swimmers from all over the world. My team is Energy Standard. We won the first season of the League in 2019 and came second last season in Budapest.”
When you finally retire from swimming, do you know what you’d like to do next?
“I’ll probably still go to the gym every day. I’d like to work with sport management somehow and maybe event planning. Working with sponsors and helping athletes handle the business aspect so that they can focus on the sport.”
You’re a role model for many young swimmers in Sweden and around the world. What’s your best advice for anyone who’d like to try to follow in your footsteps?
“I wouldn’t follow in my footsteps. I’d encourage them to find their own way. Even if I said exactly what I’ve been doing all the way, it doesn’t mean that it’s going to work for someone else. You have to trust the process. Even if it feels like it’s impossible sometimes, keep working and don’t be scared to compete and challenge yourself.”
What do you do when you’re not swimming?
“I really enjoy going out to nice restaurants. And when there’s no COVID I enjoy travelling with my better half.”
Six World Records!
Sarah is the current world recordholder in six events: 50m freestyle (long course), 100m freestyle (long course), 200m freestyle (short course), 50m butterfly (long course) and 100m butterfly (long and short course).
