World number one, newly crowned European champion – but an Olympic performance that was anything but optimal and Sweden’s first major medal haul in Paris is a fact.
– I’m really disappointed, says Perseus Karlström after finishing in 21st place, a full two minutes and ten seconds behind gold-winning Brian Daniel Pintado from Ecuador.
A few minutes earlier, he had broken down in a television interview with Max, but when he meets writing journalists, he has managed to pull himself together.
“I tried to be positive and still go along. But it’s not a wonderful feeling, right away,” says Perseus Karlström. Photo: Erik Simander
– I’ve felt all season that I can win here, but it’s not possible if you don’t stay healthy, he says.
Torshällasonen was a great hope for gold, but a positive covid test and another viral illness after the athletics European Championships in June had significantly lowered expectations when the runners set off on the one-kilometer course at the foot of the Eiffel Tower.
In advance where he was unsure of his own form and after about half the race it became increasingly clear: The body was not responding. Karlström was not more than a couple of seconds from the lead with ten laps of 20 completed, but the tight pack was large and the field’s only Swedish participant slipped further and further behind.
– Somewhere around 6-7 kilometers I felt that it might be possible to maintain a four-minute pace, but there was no more. There was no response, no pressure in the body, he says.
– I tried to be positive and still go along. But it’s not a wonderful feeling, right away.
After the tough race: “I definitely want to continue in Los Angeles.” Photo: Erik Simander
With the quarter to go and the hour passed, the gap to the leading time had grown to 16 seconds. After that, Karlström really hooked.
In recent years he has lined up medals at major championships, above all silver and bronze in the WC and EC, and this summer he won his long-awaited gold at the European Championships in Rome.
In the context of the Olympics, however, there have been no denominations at all and the question is whether there will be more chances for the 34-year-old.
– I definitely want to continue in Los Angeles (the next Summer Olympics in 2028). We already decided that last year, if the body holds up and so on. But how the four years will be or if there is a chance for a medal, we will see.
– You start to think that there are trolls in my Olympics.
The walking competition was decided at the Trocadero next to the Eiffel Tower. Photo: Erik Simander
You are 38 years old in Los Angeles. How do you see your chances of being at the same level then?
– Unfortunately, the body does not get younger. We shall see.
In the past, Karlström has had two medal chances, but since the long distance on the men’s and women’s sides has been removed in the Olympics and replaced with a mixed class, the competition is now complete.
– I will stay here for a few days now before I go home. I’m going to experience a bit of the Olympics and watch the relay, he says.
Behind the winner Pintado, Brazil’s Caio Bonfim took the silver and the bronze went to Spain’s Alvaro Martin.
Perseus Karlström after finishing the 20 kilometer race in progress. Photo: Erik Simander
