Ida Hulkko does not plan to take part in the World Championships in Long Track in June. Due to mental and physical exhaustion, the Finnish swimmer has not been able to train and compete at the level he wants.
The year 2021 was a swimmer Ida Hulkolle the best in my career so far, but also the heaviest. The season included 80 race starts, four championships as well as the International Swimming League (ISL) and good success, including European Championship silver on the long track and a semi-final place in the Tokyo Olympics.
Returning to training and competition after the Olympics was not easy. Hulkko told Sports about this already in the beginning of April in the international Helsinki Swim Meet invitation competition. At the time, he said he would have skipped, among other things, this summer’s ISL season, even if it hadn’t been canceled.
Now Hulkko has decided to skip the World Championships in June. The competitions will be held in Budapest. There are three value competitions in the swimming calendar this year, as in addition to the long-track World Championships, there are also European Championships and short-track World Championships.
– The year has been really difficult so far. Nowhere since last year’s Olympics have I reached the level of mentally swimming and fighting for medals at the top of the world. Due to mental and physical exhaustion, I am currently unable to train and compete at the level I want, Hulkko said in a statement.
The ball was spinning in the wrong direction
Hulkko said that he had tried to solve things with his own head and trusted that the good feeling would return even with a little coercion. That didn’t happen, and he and his backing team decided to skip the races.
– However, the ball has rotated in the wrong direction. It feels like I was stuck in a dead end, which materialized in the races a couple of weeks ago in Helsinki and Stockholm. I want to break this cycle now, and we’ve decided to skip the World Cup.
Hulkko is not the only swimmer to have suffered from exhaustion last year. Swedish swimming star Sarah Sjöström said in January to Expressen (you will switch to another service)that was almost burnt out after last year. Sjöström grabbed three gold, three silver and one bronze in the short track World Championships in Abu Dhabi in December.
Dreams and goals remain the same
Hulk’s goal is now to find a solution to the situation together with his background and professional help and return to his own level as soon as possible. Last year she was 4th in the world rankings 50th in the breaststroke and 15th in the 100m breaststroke.
Dreams and goals have also remained the same for Hulko. She has set her main goal for the Paris Olympics 100m breaststroke.
– I am naturally very disappointed and also worried. However, tough decisions sometimes have to be made, and there is also a blank for a new beginning. I continue my hard workout towards the race pools in Paris, but at the same time I take care of my own health. I want to enjoy swimming again and pursue my biggest dreams, Hulkko assured.