PHOTO: Bildbyrån
He is the best Swedish high jumper ever.
Today we celebrate Patrik Sjöberg on his 59th birthday!
Which reveals the truth behind the world record jump.
Patrik Sjoberg is still Sweden’s best high jumper of all time, after his fine career with several medals, titles and records. The recently turned 59-year-old still holds the Swedish and European record in high jump.
Broke the world record
The year was 1981 when Patrik Sjöberg won his first SM gold when he jumped 2.18 meters. Until 1999, he then continued to collect medals before ending his high jumping career. During the 17 years, Sjöberg won four WC medals, of which two gold, three Olympic medals, four EC gold, and eight SM gold.
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For over a year, Patrik Sjöberg held the world record in high jump, after he jumped 2.42 meters during the DN Gala in Stockholm in 1987. Since then, Mutaz Essa Barshim from Qatar and the Cuban Javier Sotomayor have jumped higher, at 2.43 and 2.45 respectively meter. But 2.42 is still the Swedish and European record.
The truth behind it
When Sjöberg was a guest on “Footbollsmorgon”, he published the text about how difficult it actually is to break a world record.
– Most of the time, you don’t get many chances to jump world records. Everything has to be right – it has to be a good track, it has to be a good competition with the right and participants, both quantity and quality. Then there has to be good weather, then you yourself have to be in shape, you have to be injury-free, there are so many parameters that have to be right. And it usually never works more than maybe once per season, he says in the program.
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One June day in Stockholm in 1987, almost all of that was true for Sjöberg.
– I kind of had maximum flow. Still, I had a lot of pain in my hamstring so it was uncertain if I could jump at all. Such things disturb the mental part, he says and continues:
– I felt after that world record that, of course I was better than 2.42, but the mental attitude itself – you can’t jump higher than the highest. Of course I wanted to jump higher, but I lost some motivation there.
READ MORE: Patrik Sjöberg reveals Börje Salming’s incredible effort – after getting into trouble with the Canadian police(!)
READ MORE: Stefan Holm’s honest words – now reveal the truth about the relationship with Patrik Sjöberg: “The last 10 years…”
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