By Hritika Sharma
BEIJING (Reuters) – Niklas Edin’s hometown of Ornskoldsvik is famous for producing some of ice hockey’s greatest players, with Olympic champion Peter Forsberg and NHL All-Star twins Daniel and Henrik Sedin among the long list of talents raised there.
Located just over 525 kilometres (326 miles) north of Stockholm, Ornskoldsvik has also produced one of the world’s most decorated curlers in the form of Swedish men’s skip Edin.
“I’m from a hockey town so I watched a lot of hockey growing up and played a lot in school, too,” said Edin, who participated in as many as 10 sports at the go at one point before starting curling at 14.
“Lots of weightlifting, running, badminton, tennis – racquet sports in general, I’ve done a lot of that.”
More recently, Edin has taken up pool and credits that with helping keep his mind sharp.
“I’m starting to compete a bit but I take pool more as practice,” he said. “It’s easier on the body compared to being in a cold ice rink for two hours, which puts a lot of stress on the joints… It’s more about keeping mentally fit.”
At 18, Edin skipped his team to a junior world championship in 2004. It was the start of a long and glittering career during which he has won everything but the Olympic gold.
In his three previous appearances at the Winter Games, Edin has finished fourth at Vancouver 2010, third in Sochi in 2014 and runner-up in Pyeongchang four years ago.
Barking orders on the ice comes naturally to Edin, who was part of one of the last Swedish generations to undergo mandatory military service and served as a tank commander for 10 months.
“We had two drivers and I was the commander. I’d say, ‘Go out and shoot something and I’ll stay in here – safely,” he joked.
“It wasn’t the most fun at the time but I think it was very healthy to do military service at that age when you’re 18 or 19.
“I was the group leader in the military so it kind of overlaps a little bit now being the skip in a team sport where you have to be disciplined and have to show a lot of respect for your team mates and help each other out.”
STERN TEST
Edin has won five world championships, including the last three, and seven European crowns among numerous other accolades. But as the trophies mounted up, so did the injuries.
He has had a staggering 10 operations in the past decade – on his lower back, right elbow, shoulder, left knee, and a procedure on his ankle last year which still bothers him.
“I had a surgery this summer and I will have another one after these Olympic Games, so it’s not perfect but it’s good enough for curling,” he said, adding that most of his injuries were likely caused by years of training.
Now 36, the Beijing Games might turn out to be Edin’s last chance to climb the Olympic podium steps.
Sweden will face a stern test against Canada in the semi-final on Thursday, hoping to take another step towards winning the gold that has so far eluded them.
“There was actually a little bit of a scare going into these Olympics,” Edin said.
“I’ve had some issues for a couple of months leading up to this, but right now it feels good… Hopefully, no injuries will come in the way.”
(Reporting by Hritika Sharma; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)
