Seeing that Sweden has a rather small population (approx. 10 million) it is quite impressive to think about the large number of successful athletes this country has produced/is producing.
Competition for viewers
Winter time equals winter sports. A large number of Swedes engage in winter sports personally, while others watch it on tv.
There are several Swedish television channels that compete for viewers in connection with various sporting events. Two of the the most popular shows, “Vinterstudion” and “Viaplay Vinter”, average 500,000 and 137,000 viewers respectively*.
Gold medalists 2025
Event: All Star Perche by SCC, France 2025
Discipline: Pole vault
Gold medalist: Armand Duplantis
Result: 6,27 (first try)
Event: Open European European Championships in biathlon, Italy 2025
Discipline: Sprint 7,5 km
Gold medalist: Anna-Karin Heijdenberg
Result: 21.43,1 (0+0)
Event: CS15 Grand Prix, Qatar
Discipline: Horsejumping (1,60)
Gold medalist: Malin Baryard Johnsson with horse H&M Indiana
Result: 0+0/35,21
Event: FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2025, Norway
Discipline: Women’s skiathlon 20 km
Gold medalist: Ebba Andersson
Result: 47.57,1
Event: FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2025, Norway
Discipline: Women’s Sprint freestyle
Gold medalist: Jonna Sundling
Result: 3:03.36
Event: Biathlon World Championships 2025, Switzerland
Discipline: Women’s mass start 12,5 km
Gold medalist: Elvira Öberg
Result: 40.32,3
*To put the number of viewers in context:
US sports channel ESPN has an average of 723,000 viewers which should be seen in relation to a total population of approx. 340 million.
MrsSwede - A Blog About Sweden and The Swedes 