10 Swedish sports stars

2. Armand Duplantis – pole vault supremo

Born to an American father and a Swedish mother, pole vaulter Armand 'Mondo' Duplantis grew up in the US. He may hold dual citizenship, but Sweden happily counts him as one of our Swedish sports stars. 

We hope Armand has invested in a very big medal cabinet, because the golds have been steadily coming since his breakthrough in 2018. That’s when he won the European Championships in Berlin, Germany clearing 6.05 metres – aged 18.

Since then, he has piled up two Olympic golds, three outdoor World Championships, three indoor World Championships, three outdoor European Championships, and one indoor European Championship. 

He holds the world record since 2020, and has polished it more than two handfuls of time. His current record stands at 6.30 metres.

The sky seems to be Armand’s only limit.

3. Daniel Ståhl – discus dominant

Daniel Ståhl’s surname means ‘steel’ in Swedish – quite fitting for a discus thrower with both Olympic and World Championship golds in his baggage. 

When Ståhl triumphed at the 2019 World Championships in Doha, he secured Sweden’s first World Championship gold in athletics on the men’s side since 2003. Then at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, Japan – staged in 2021 – he arrived as the overwhelming favourite after finishing several seasons as the world number one. And he delivered, with a winning throw already in the second round, 68.90 metres. 

 At the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, Hungary, he faced more adversity and only sealed the gold on his final attempt, with a throw of 71.46 metres.

Two years later, at the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo, Ståhl delivered with just as much drama – winning the gold with his last throw (70.47 metres) in a rain-delayed final.

4. Ebba Årsjö – alpine daredevil

Since her debut on the Para alpine skiing scene in 2019, Ebba Årsjö has grown into a titan of the sport and is a strong contender in the 2026 Paralympics. 
 
She won the overall World Cup in both 2024 and 2025, and has eight world championships gold medals to her name – the most recent in slalom, giant slalom and super-G at the 2025 World Para Alpine Skiing Championships in Slovenia. 
 
At the Beijing 2022 Paralympics, she claimed downhill bronze before going on to win gold in the super-combined and slalom. 
 
Born with Klippel-Trénaunay syndrome, Ebba kept her condition private for much of her childhood while training and competing with Sweden’s junior elite. As her right-leg strength began to affect her skiing, she formally switched to Para sport at the age of 17. 

Widely touted as Sweden’s biggest hope for the 2026 Paralympics, Ebba has said that the Milano-Cortina Games in March will be her last, bringing her Paralympic career to a close at just 25.

Frida Karlsson – trail warrior 

In 2025, in Trondheim, Norway, Frida Karlsson made history by winning gold in the first-ever women’s 50 km mass start at the World Championships. It was also her first individual world title, having previously won gold only in relay events. 

With this breakthrough now behind her, Frida appears poised to contend regularly at the very top as she builds toward the Winter Olympics in Italy in February. 

Born in 1999, Frida Karlsson has grown into one of cross-country skiing’s most compelling figures, combining raw power, tactical intelligence and an unflinching competitive spirit. 

Whether grinding through brutal climbs or surging clear in the final kilometres, Frida skis with a confidence that reflects years of experience at the sharp end of the sport – and an appetite for challenges that only seem to fuel her further.     

6. Johanna Rytting Karneryd – midfield maestro

Awarded the 2024 Diamond Ball (Diamantbollen) as Sweden’s best player, Johanna Rytting Kaneryd has established herself as a key figure for both club and country.

In 2023, she joined English club Chelsea, where she has become the creative engine in midfield, orchestrating play with vision, precision, and relentless energy.

Her ability to link defense and attack was vital in the London side’s treble-winning 2025 season, where the team clinched the Women’s Super League, the Women’s FA Cup title, and the Women’s League Cup. Chelsea finished their domestic season unbeaten.

Known both for her tactical intelligence and technical skills, Johanna was one of the key players on the Swedish team at the UEFA Women's EURO 2025.  

7. Ludvig Åberg – superstar in the making?

In June 2023, Ludvig Åberg turned professional, and quickly became the world’s most talked-about young golfer. 

Just 75 days after joining the paid ranks, Ludvig won his first pro tournament at the Omega European Masters in Switzerland. Later at the Ryder Cup, he made history as the first player to feature in the team event without having contested a major championship – and won with Team Europe. 

Then in 2024, in his major debut, Ludvig finished second at the US Masters at Augusta National, Georgia. Following this meteoric rise, he’s been touted as the next superstar of golf.

Since then, Ludvig has struggled somewhat to replicate his form, with a seventh place at the 2025 US Masters as his best result at majors.

But Ludvig is one of the top-ranked young players on tour, and his peers continue to praise both his talent and composure. 

8. Maja Stark – fearless like few

‘Stark’ is the Swedish word for strong – fitting for this rising golfer, whose down-to-earth demeanor belies a competitor tough as nails.

Precision and patience are given in golf. What makes Maja Stark stand out is her aggressive play and her ability to go full throttle when the pressure is on.

These are qualities that have taken her to the top of her sport, most recently at the 2025 U.S. Women's Open, which she won at Erin Hills in Wisconsin. Prior to the win, Maja had six titles to her name on the Ladies European Tour, but a professional victory in the US had eluded her. 

As Sweden’s most recent major championship winner, Maja has taken over the torch in a long line of winners on the women’s side – Liselotte Neumann, Helen Alfredsson, Pernilla Lindberg, Anna Nordqvist and, of course, Annika Sörenstam.

Maja only turned pro in 2021 but already has double appearances in the Solheim Cup. Her first real mark at majors was at the 2024 Chevron Championship where she finished second.

9. Sarah Sjöström – the swimmer winner

Sara Sjöström was only 14 when she won her first international gold medal: the 100-metre butterfly at the 2008 European Championships. But just how great she would become, few could have predicted.  

By now, Sara is widely regarded as one of the greatest sprinters of all time.  

Her dominance was most recently on display at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where she won both the 50m freestyle and the 100m freestyle. Sara now boasts six individual medals from the last three Olympics – three golds, two silvers and one bronze. 

To date, she has also won 14 individual world titles in long course events, including the 50m freestyle, 100m freestyle, 50m butterfly and 100m butterfly. The question is when the count will stop for Sara.  

There is a Rocky Balboa element to her story. By now, Sara has won nearly everything there is to win in swimming, but as a child, in her first-ever competition, she failed miserably by starting with a belly splash. How’s that for rising from a fall?

10. William Nylander – hockey sniper

Aged 19, William Nylander made his NHL debut against the Tampa Bay Lightning, with the Toronto Maple Leafs. That was in 2016.

William has since remained faithful to the Canadian side, and looks set to go down in history as one the truly great servants of the team, having signed a contract extension that keeps him in Toronto until the end of the 2031–2032 season.

He has gradually evolved into a prolific scorer and playmaker for Toronto. His best season to date was the 2023–2024 season, which he opened with a 17-game point streak (goals and assists) – the club record – and went on to rack up 98 points for the season. The season came to a halt when Toronto were eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs by the Florida Panthers – the eventual winners.

During the 2024–2025 NHL season, William notched 84 points to solidify his status as a top-tier forward. He shines in one of NHL’s truly classic teams – but some will argue a cursed one. Toronto last won the Stanley Cup in 1967.