THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE INTERNATIONAL BIATHLON ...

PERSONALITIES Persönlichkeitenbig celebration in my hometown.The celebration was great. I live in Storuman in Lapland;it is a really small place. It has a population of 3000 peopleand 1500 showed up. The whole area is 6500 Square Km sothere is less than 1 person per sq km, mostly forest. It waspretty amazing. I have always been their favorite son. Butnow I think they are really proud of me.BW: You did not go to Vancouver as a big favorite andyet you won when some others did not. Did that low profilehelp you win the Gold Medal?BF: It was easier, with no pressure. I had the shoulder injuryin the autumn and then was sick over Christmas; I hadno podium results before the Olympics. If it was last seasonwhen I had won a race and been on the podium, thenI would have been considered a medal contender. Therewas not so much media before the Olympics. Of course, Ialways said my goal was to make a medal. They (the media)did not really believe me. There is a lot of media pressurein Sweden; Helena had 80% of the pressure and Anna Carinprobably 15%. I had 5%! I was pretty relaxed. Of courseyou always have your own pressure. I knew I had a chance;I knew I was in shape. There is always big pressure andsometimes, the pressure from within you is the biggest. Itwas an advantage for me; it was my third Olympics.I have been in this businessfor 10 years. For thelast 2 or 3 years, I think Ihave been ready to win amedal. At the last Olympics,I was skiing well; Iwas a good shooter, butI was not ready as a personto win a medal. I hadthe skills all of my career,but not as a personwho really believed that Icould win a medal. I hadto believe that I was thatstrong person that couldhit that last shot.BW: Tell us about howyou hit that final shot toseal the victory.BF: I missed the fourthshot. Now I was standingthere in lane 1; thisis the Olympics; ‘manor mouse’ as we say inSweden. Then I hit, itwas in the middle, in thecenter. CLICK! I justBjörn Ferrytook it easy and…yes! Four years ago,it would have beenmore like panic. Iwould have just hoped that it would turn white. That day Iwas strong.In the last 200 meters, I realized, ‘I am going to win thisrace.’ But I was never sure. Perhaps there was someonethat I did not see. Then I crossed the finish line and no onewas there. I won it! My heart was beating pretty fast, but Ihad time to think about what I should do. Then I thoughtabout my friend Björn Lind who won the Gold in the XCSprint in Torino. I made the same jump with the skis likehe did.That was my other side. People who only see me in acompetition think I am a very serious guy, but anyone whomeets me any other place thinks I am totally crazy.BW: Did you realize before it happened actually howwinning would be and were you prepared for it?BF: I knew it was big. I thought about it a lot, my wholelife. I was prepared to do the interviews, singing the Swedishnational hymn as I got my medal. Of course, I did notrealize how big the celebration in Storuman would be. I didnot realize how big it wasfor the people who watchbiathlon. It changed mylife and my confidenceabout myself. It gaveme some self-respect. Iknow I can do it. If I didit one time, it will makeme stronger for manyother parts of life, notonly Biathlon. I know Iam a strong person andI can make a differencefor myself. To see the oldguys in Storuman crying;Sweden is a prettyreserved country. Theydo not tell you that youare great. You have toremain normal and notget up there (gesturingabove his head). Thenthey would say he is nota good guy anymore.I have always lived inStoruman, my whole life.The official Magazine of the IBU 20 I 2010 biathlonworld 81