All spring training hours on an exercise bike made Sarah Sjöström start to think about whether the coaches thought they were preparing her for the Tour de France rather than for the Olympic swimming.
– Yes, there were times when it felt like that, says Sjöström with a laugh.
The reason for the focus on leg training – and thus an unusually large number of training hours on an exercise bike – was not originally due to the desire to get stronger legs. Instead, Sarah Sjöström was forced and forced because the slippery accident in February, which resulted in an elbow fracture, meant that she could not train her arms.
The solution then became to focus instead on the legs, and even if the origin was due to something negative, the result has been positive.
For 28-year-old Sarah Sjöström has become significantly stronger. Something that she benefits from, not least in the underwater work.
It was already noticed during the Olympic swimming in Tokyo, but may be felt even more clearly now that the short track season is starting.
In the short course, there are more turns, and thus more shots from the tile.
– It will be really exciting to see how much I will benefit from all the leg training, says Sjöström.
– “It was a long time since I was as strong in the second length as during the Olympics,” says Sjöström about the increased leg strength.
Photo: Joel Marklund / Bildbyrån
Just over three weeks ago Sarah Sjöström traveled home from Tokyo with a medal in her luggage. On the last day of competition, she swam home one Olympic silver in the 50 meter freestyle.
– I am very proud of my silver and of the trip I made to the Olympics. I am also very happy for the nice reactions I have met afterwards. Almost every time I go out, someone stops me to say congratulations and praise me for what I did, says Sarah Sjöström.
– I have never experienced anything like this, not even after my three medals at the Olympics in Rio 2016, and it really warms, she continues.
After a short holiday, it is already time for the Swedish swimming star to pick out the competition swimsuit again. On Thursday, the third edition of the swimming tour ISL, International swimming league, begins.
ISL is a team competition and during five intense weeks of competition in Naples – where all the regular season matches are decided – several of the world’s best swimmers will take part.
This time, however, Sarah Sjöström, who is also part of the Energy Standards team this year, will only be in the two initial basic series matches. She thus waives the two concluding remarks.
– Yes, this time I have chosen to do it that way. I am not yet really ready for this kind of intense competition but will go home and train instead, says Sarah Sjöström.
– It will be better for both me and the team.
When ISLs playoffs are decided in Eindhoven in November, the plan is for her to be back in the Energy Standards team line-up again.
Sjöström’s competition schedule during the autumn also includes the World Short Course Championships in Abu Dhabi, which should have been decided last year but which were moved to December this year.
Sarah Sjöström is not the only Swedish Olympic swimmer to start again this week.
Another five Swedish swimmers who were in Tokyo will compete in the ISL. Michelle Coleman and Louise Hansson belong to the Toronto Titans for the second year in a row. This year they will also be joined by another Swede, namely Sara Junevik.
Erik Persson, who last year also swam for the Toronto Titans, will this year swim for Iron.
–
:quality(80)/cdn-kiosk-api.telegraaf.nl/43de84e2-04c0-11ec-95dc-0218eaf05005.jpg "Afghan comedian killed by Taliban: he kept joking until the end | Abroad")