The day started in the night. I could not sleep. Nervous as never before. The body was exploding with expectations. The nervousness was good, not the kind of anxious one. More just the “I want to go”-one. I am back in Åre. It was in the middle of the winter. I knew my shape was great. The pressure was not high and the feeling was there. I felt the tingling in my stomach, but my team was just in the perfect spirit and that was making me happy too. I was getting calmer. My mum and dad were there. My happy technician was boosting me and my confidence was on top. The warm up is just passing by without anything special and my skiing is great.
I look at the course from the right kind of mindset. You know that one when you are like ”Oh this is an advantage for me”-kind of one. The slope looked great and my mind was good. I had my mental coach, Carl-Magnus Helin, at home who was helping me over the phone to find the right tension too.
I knew Jessica made a great run, she was in the 3rd position. So when it was my turn, I think I might be able to ski well. The longer the run is going, the more confident I am getting and in the end I am just skiing. In the finish I am just pushing it all and meet the nr 2 in the finish. Wow. Great first run. A big surprise. Then, it is no longer just in my head. So nice to finally get to know that it is for real. I could be there. So second run, I have to take the chance. Just be calm and ski. A lot of people are there for me, my coach Anders Nisse Nilsson is giving me the best feeling ever. I am for sure very nervous but I am at the same time there in my mind. The longer I ski, the better I ski. In the finish I see the sign of 2. First, disappointed. Then, WOW! I am on the podium. A huge happiness and the feeling of “I want to win” so badly! That day I was almost the best one. It was getting closer…