Per Elofsson – The skiing legend: – Prisoner in my own body

It was in 2018 that he himself shared with the public that he had had a stroke.

– I understood that something was seriously wrong. Since then, I’ve barely managed to go to the bathroom myself, and in any case haven’t been able to write messages, Elofsson wrote on Instagram in October 2018.

– I was close to dying. I was lucky not to do that, he said the following year.

Steepness of play

At the start of the 2000s, he was one of the world’s best cross-country skiers. Back then, Swedish cross-country skiers competed with the Norwegians.

He won several World Cup golds, and was the big favorite in several exercises in the Olympics in 2002, but burned out at altitude in Salt Lake City against Johan Mühlegg. The German who went for Spain delivered races hardly seen before or since, but was caught for EPO in a gigantic doping scandal that overshadowed the sporting aspect of the Games in the USA.

After the championship, Elofsson got an infection because he had strained his body too hard.

Only 28 years old, he quit in 2005 as a result of overtraining and burnout.

In an interview with Expressen, published in Easter, the Swedish skiing icon talks about the tough time after the stroke. He describes that his entire right side was partially paralyzed. The man who had been physically active all his life had to limit himself to rehabilitation exercises.

– It was strange for me. I have used my body as a tool, but now I became a prisoner in my own body. I wasn’t used to it going on strike like that, he tells Expressen.

The basic physics he had built up over a number of years as an athlete disappeared. Nor has he been seen in the cross-country environment. He was in the 2018 Olympics as an expert in South Korea. Half a year later, the stroke occurred.

– The first years afterwards I was affected. Then it wasn’t worth going out. Now I’m fitter, but I only follow Viaplay, which broadcasts the World Cup, and think they do a fantastic job, Elofsson explains further.

It is only in the last year that form has recovered after the battle almost six years ago. Last summer he put on his roller skis and set out for a two-hour training session. It was a turning point and a milestone.

– Shall we laugh or cry?

After his health improved, he also changed his civilian work path. From office work to physical work at the airport. He says the job consists of loading luggage, security checks and service to travellers.

In his job at the airport in Umeå, he meets many people. The Express asks him if he is often recognized.

– During the security check, I almost always notice that someone is staring. Many people come forward and chat, it’s just nice. Now that you have distanced yourself from the small world you lived in, it is nice to notice that you have influenced people. I don’t take that for granted, answers Elofsson.