Sarah Sjostrom announced today that she will not be competing in 2025, but she is still considering a 6th Olympic Games.
In an interview with Swedish newspaper Dagen Nyheter (DN), Sjostrom confirmed her plans through this year, saying “I have no competitions planned. I will train, but at a low load and then slowly increase. I think that is the best way to last in the long run.”
The 30-year-old Sjostrom is coming off an exceptional 2024 Olympic Games where she won gold in both the 50 and the 100 freestyles, her first Olympic gold in either event. She shared in her interview that this success has led to people encouraging her to consider retirement saying “You should stop now when you’re on top”.
Sjostrom confessed it would have been the easiest thing to stop now, but she is “still curious” about what she can do.
By taking 2025 off, Sjostrom will miss her first long course World Championships since 2009 when she was just 15-years-old. She is currently the six-time champion in the 50 butterfly, and the 3-time champion in the 50 freestyle. She will not defend either title at this year’s Worlds in Singapore.
She has not ruled out a sixth-straight Olympic Games, telling the newspaper it would be “awesome” to just qualify, but saying it would be “even more awesome if I can be close to the times I swam in Paris.”
Sjostrom will be 34 when the LA Olympics commence, but we’ve seen older 50 freestylers take the gold. Anthony Ervin was 35 when he won the gold medal in the 50 free at the 2016 Olympic Games, becoming the oldest Olympic swimming champion ever.
She has been a cornerstone of European swimming, breaking 9 World Records since 2009. Her very first record came at just 15-years-old when she went 56.44 in the 100 butterfly at the 2009 World Championships. Her most recent record was at the 2023 Worlds in Fukuoka where she swam 23.61 in the 50 freestyle. She is the current record holder in the 50 free, 100 free, and 50 butterfly events.
