The 29-year-old Finspångs canoeist got off to a good start in the final, and was alone in the lead for most of the final.
– It was surreal! I already felt with a lap to go that they weren’t catching anything behind and I was able to keep up a decent speed. So I just tried to enjoy the whole last kilometer, says Lindberg to SVT Sport, and continues:
– And the feeling when I crossed the finish line… It was incredibly good! There were a lot of emotions running through the body then.
Could you have imagined before the race that you would bring it home?
– Of course I try to believe in myself, but I had a goal and a dream to win a WC medal, because I’ve never done that before. So I thought about that before, that it would be very big. But to win gold… It was in my mind before, but I hardly dared to hope for it.
Had covid problem this year
The gold was Lindberg’s first individual WC medal. In 2019, he finished fourth in the WC. He has since been sidelined with a long-term elbow injury, missing the entire 2020 season and much of 2021.
– This is the first time I have run a sprint competition since the WC three years ago, he says.
This season has also been largely destroyed. This is due to covid problems. He got covid-19 in February and suffered with those problems for several months and has therefore missed several World Cup competitions.
– It was very difficult. At first I didn’t think it would be that serious. I got it at our first camp with the national team and I got a lot of setbacks when I started training. It took a very long time before I recognized my body again. It was almost three months before it started to feel normal again, he says, and continues:
– So I’ve had to build up my body from that. It was very nice that I had time to get it together for the WC, which was the big goal.
“Want so much”
Joakim Lindberg admits that it has been a difficult year leading up to this WC.
– It is very difficult in those situations to keep the motivation up all the time. And you want so much, so the hardest thing for me was to start cautiously, which was given a lot of advice. So the biggest challenge has been the mental thing, to fight on even when things are going very slowly, he says.
But now you have your first WC medal – a gold. What does it mean to you?
– It’s huge! It means a lot, really a motivation to continue and work towards future competitions. Great fun, really!
In just two weeks, the next championship awaits Lindberg. Then he runs the K2 1000 meters with Martin Nathell at the European Championships in Munich. It will be the first time the duo compete together internationally.
– It will be very exciting, he says.
And you have a little extra confidence now after this, right?
– Yes absolutely! It’s easier to believe in yourself, of course. You are always very nervous before. It’s easy to look at everyone else, what their results are and so on. But now you’re up there, and it’s easier to motivate yourself and believe in yourself.
CANOEING ARCHIVE: Kernen and Nathell aim for the Olympics together (September 24, 2021):
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