PHOTO: Bildbyrån
Linn Svahn fought through a two-year nightmare.
Now she reveals Frida Karlsson and Maja Dahlqvist’s decisive role.
– They supported and encouraged me the whole time, she says in Radiosporten.
It was during 2020-21 that Lynn Svahn broke through with a thud and crash. She came from nowhere and quickly became a world figure skater with her huge winner’s skull and superior sprint speed.
Svahn’s nightmare
But when she was ready to conquer the world at 21, the big nightmare came. At the end of the 2021 season, Svahn fell and seriously injured his shoulder.
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It would lead to double operations and almost two years off the slopes. It wasn’t until February 2023 that Linn came back again and it was a long struggle with both the physical and the psychological.
Paying tribute to Frida & Maja
Now the Swede reveals how crucial the blue and yellow national team mates are Frida Karlsson and Maja Dahlqvist was during the tough period. When the trio left the national ski team and trained on their own last season.
– I spent a lot of time with Maja and Frida that year. We broke up and it turned out that we all stood by each other so we got a project together. “We do this together”, sort of. It also gave a strength that “I know how good they are and I’m so far away”. To get that support: “Damn, you were closer to them than last week,” says Linn in an interview with Radiosporten.
– And they supported and encouraged me the whole time. Because I was so bad for so long, it was so horrible.
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When it was at its darkest, Svahn wrestled with many mental ghosts and inner thoughts that shook her.
– When you start to doubt that your body is working. Or that it is run. Is my body passé now? And the uncertainty was probably the worst. If someone had just said: “It’s over now and then you will compete”, then it would have been quite simple, she admits in the interview.
READ MORE: Gunde Svan looks back on his incredible skiing career – the icon regrets it to this day: “Not so smart”
Linn Svahn fought her way back in time for the 2023 World Ski Championships and exceeded many expectations by achieving two individual fourth places in Planica, Slovenia.
– I am very proud. Now I don’t know how long my career will be or how much I will succeed. But that’s what I’ll probably be most proud of, actually. Two fourth places, it’s probably the biggest trip I’ve done. And what is sport without a trip, she tells the radio channel.
Surely Linn Svahn is absolutely fantastic who fought her way back to the world elite again? Share the article and have your say!
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