Victor Johansson made history during the SC final in swimming.
Now the Swede talks about the conversation from Nils van der Poel before the competition.
– Kudos to him, he says.
Nils van der Poel has been one of Sweden’s top athletes in recent years. The Swede ended his career after this season, and in connection with that chose to release his training plan on the internet.
The call from van der Poel
It described how incredibly much time and commitment the 25-year-old put into his training for the Olympics in Beijing last winter. Someone who was hugely inspired was the Swedish long-distance swimmer Victor Johansson.
– When it comes to distance swimming in Sweden, there is really no one I can train with or compare myself to. There is no one who runs the kind of swimming sessions that I do, and no one who is as crazy as I am, he tells Dagens Nyheter and continues:
– Now no one should think that I am comparing myself to van der Poel. He is on a level of his own. But after reading his training diary, I became curious and wanted to know more.
Victor Johansson then contacted SOK, the Swedish Olympic Committee, in the hope of getting hold of Nils van der Poel. A week later, Johansson’s phone rang, and it turned out to be van der Poel on the other end.
“Most magical I’ve experienced”
They talked to each other and Victor Johansson got answers to everything he wondered about diet and exercise.
– Kudos to him for taking that time.
A few months ago, Victor Johansson made history. He became the first Swede in 18 years to swim 1500 meters in under 15 minutes, thus breaking the dream limit.
For that he was rewarded with 100,000 kroner, when he swam in the time 14:58,59.
– It is the most magical thing I have ever experienced. I was floating on clouds for days afterwards. I still have a hard time understanding that I did it – and at home, too, says Victor Johansson.
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