Sarah Sjostrom Hosting “Sjostrom Invitational” For Age Group Swimmers In Stockholm
By James Sutherland on SwimSwam
Swedish sprinting legend Sarah Sjostrom is still one of the best swimmers in the world, but that hasn’t stopped the 30-year-old from beginning to give back to the sport in her home country.
In collaboration with the Swedish Olympic Committee, Swedish Swimming and Södertörns SS (Sjostrom’s home club), Sjostrom is hosting the inaugural Sjostrom Invitational next month in Stockholm, with the event set to run August 12.
The competition is geared towards age group swimmers, with athletes born in 2008 or later being eligible (16 & under).
The one-day meet will bring Sjostrom’s unique skillset to the table, as she is not only one of the best sprinters in history, but also has an uncanny ability to reel off fast swims in succession.
We’ve seen her do it in the International Swimming League’s (ISL) skins events, and she’s also thrived at the Monaco leg of the Mare Nostrum Tour.
Now, Sjostrom is introducing the multi-round elimination-style 50-meter races to the next generation, as the one-day meet will feature quarter-final, semi-final and finals of each stroke 50, along with a timed final of the 100 IM.
The meet will be held at the Eriksdalsbadet pool in Stockholm, with the races to be run in short course meters.
You can find full meet info here.
Set to represent Sweden at her fifth Olympic Games later this summer in Paris, Sjostrom is the predominant favorite in the women’s 50 freestyle, having won three straight world titles in the event and breaking the world record last year in Fukuoka (23.61).
A four-time Olympic medalist, Sjostrom won gold and broke the world record in the women’s 100 butterfly in 2016, adding a silver in the 200 free and a bronze in the 100 free, and three years ago in Tokyo, she claimed silver in the 50 free to complete a remarkable comeback after breaking her elbow earlier in the year.
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