PHOTO: Bildbyrån
He is one of Swedish sports’ greatest ever.
But there is a side of Gunde Svan that few know about.
– I have never drunk alcohol, he admits in an interview with Expressen.
He is so incredibly special, our blue-yellow skiing hero Gunde Swan. A spreader of joy of a rarely seen kind and a winner’s skull that is unique in Swedish sports.
Gunde’s career
Because Gunde never gave up and always fought to the end while there was nothing that could stop him from breaking into a huge smile. Svan conquered the skiing world in the 80s and with his four Olympic golds, seven World Cup golds and five overall victories at the World Cup, he is a major icon in Swedish cross-country skiing.
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After the active career, Gunde Svan has stepped straight into the television box and has remained as one of our most loved television profiles. Again, it is his infectious laugh and warm personality that have contributed to the legend’s successful television career.
READ MORE: The truth about Thomas Wassberg’s brilliant skiing coup that fooled everyone – Gunde Svan admits after 38 years
Svan admits
But there is a side of Gunde that few know about. He has never in his life drunk a drop of alcohol.
– Never. I have never drunk alcohol, he admits in an old interview with Expressen.
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There is also a dark and tragic reason behind the decision not to drink alcohol. When Svan was growing up, there was a neighbor boy who became an alcoholic as early as 15 years old.
– He lived until he was about 30, maybe 35. I saw in him early on that the alcohol thing was dangerous, not a good thing. Combined with my elite athleticism, it was a pretty easy thing to opt out. Although I came in my teens, like everyone else, and wanted to try. But for me, it was never an issue to even taste, he tells the evening newspaper.
READ MORE: Ferry Svan’s honest words about father Gunde Svan – the son now answers what everyone is wondering: “All my life”
“Terrible”
For a long time it has been hard to resist nagging and pressure from the environment. But it also strengthened Gunde Svan and built up his resistance to alcohol more.
– Absolutely. The peer pressure that comes in many contexts, which makes you still try later, I felt that more like a merit the more times I turned it down. It built me up pretty well. Being able to say no, Gunde says in the interview.
– Now they have stopped bidding, because everyone knows about it. I don’t even have to say no.
Gunde Svan has since maintained his total ban on alcohol even in the fall of his age and a few years after this interview he opened up again on the television program “Hellenius hörna” if he still hadn’t drunk a drop of alcohol.
– No. If I’ve lasted this long, I’ll be able to last a while longer because I’ve had so much fun not drinking. I have been able to keep dancing all night, he says in the TV program.
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