Susanne Gunnarsson.
Photo: PATRIK ÖSTERBERG / STELLA PICTURES
The canoeist Agneta Andersson from Karlskoga was one of Sweden’s foremost Olympians of all time. In total, she won an unparalleled seven Olympic medals, three of which were gold – two in Los Angeles in 1984 and one in Atlanta in 1996.
She won the gold in Atlanta together with her friend Susanne Gunnarsson.
Andersson passed away last October after a long battle with cancer.
And when the canoeist was briefly honored during the Sports Gala – along with others who passed away during the year – friend Susanne Gunnarsson, 60, present at the award ceremony, could not hold back the tears.
But the memorial also sparked anger.
She thinks the friend deserved more tributes when she was alive.
She talks about the thoughts that arose in her when the photo of canoe star Andersson was shown in the In memoriam part of the SVT broadcast.
– It still hurts me so much. It hurts so much and I just sit and think about Agneta, and I said “Agneta, you’re sitting up there thinking ‘Aha, only now were you celebrated'”. I cried then. It is tedious.
– Agneta is a great athlete, not only in Sweden but all over the world in canoeing. And the canoe is about a hundred nations, she says.
Agneta Andersson and Susanne Gunnarsson celebrate the gold medal in the Olympics in Atlanta 1996.
Photo: BJÖRN TILLY / BILDBYRÅN
Hoped to survive
She thinks that SVT could have devoted more time to paying tribute to Agneta Andersson.
Sven-Göran Eriksson, who recently told us that he has been diagnosed with cancer and is feared to have a maximum of one year left to live, received a standing ovation during the “Sports Gala”.
The football coach was celebrated with video greetings from football stars.
Gunnarsson would have liked to see Agneta Andersson receive a similar tribute when she was alive.
– Yes, but that’s because he went out with it. Agneta did not want to go out with it. Very few knew about it. It was her way. She had hoped she would survive. Agneta was a bit more like a Greta Garbo. She did not want to be seen so much in mass media unless it concerned sports. Sport was her love.
– She loved to train even when she was off and otherwise she wanted to be at home and bake buns. She was a homebody and didn’t think glamor was that important. Her sports career was bigger.
Agneta Andersson with her two gold medals at the Olympics in Los Angeles in 1984.
Photo: ROGER TILLBERG / IBL
“Angry and pissed off”
It has been a tough time since the friend passed away.
– It’s still hard. It hurts me so terribly. I think a lot about Martin and Benjamin, her partner and her son.
Susanne Gunnarsson and Agneta Andersson got to know each other already in their teens.
It must also be like losing a part of yourself?
– Yes, we have been close to each other for 47 years. It’s a long time. We have experienced both love, joy, tears, medals and a fantastic friendship.
The tears run down the six-time world champion Gunnarsson’s cheeks. Friends come over and hug her at the same time as other party-dressed guests leave the gala.
– It’s such a damn sadness, she says. It’s mostly that I’m angry and pissed off that I didn’t get the last 20 years together with all the memories we have. That’s what I’m most angry about.
– She will never see her grandchildren. She will never have the good things in life.
AGNETA ANDERSSON
Born: 25 April 1961
Died: October 8, 2023
Achievements: Three Olympic golds (1984, 96), two Olympic silvers (84, 92), two Olympic bronzes (96, 92), WC gold (93), three WC silvers (81, 82, 93) and seven WC bronze (81, 81, 82, 83, 85, 87, 91).
Show moreREAD MORE: Agneta Andersson kept the illness a secret until the end
