Daniel Ståhl threw the discus farther than anyone else in Tokyo 2021. In the same event, Duplantis won his first Olympic gold. Four years later, the pole vaulter followed up with another in Paris.
How interested are the athletes in what is coming soon in Milan and around the Italian Alps? There are differences in opinion and taste.
I hope there will be many medals and gold for Sweden. There are many athletes I will follow. I know most of the team. We will see each other at various events, on Bosön or other places. It will be a short chat, just to wish everyone good luck, he says.
You have to dare.
What would you do if you were a winter athlete?
Skeleton, downhill head first. Otherwise, hockey player.
Have you tried skeleton?
"No, I haven't. You have to dare," he says, smiling.
Duplantis grew up in Lafayette, Louisiana, in the southern United States. There, the average winter temperature is between 17 and 19 degrees.
In other words, not much for skiers.
I'm not good at anything like that (winter sports). You're either good on land or on water or on ice. You don't usually have talent for two of them.
I can't even ski. I'm a little scared of skiing too. There always seems to be someone in a group who gets hurt.
Best to watch
Are you going to watch a lot of the Olympics?
I'm going to do that, but I don't have a rock-solid idea, Duplantis says, and he reveals what is most appealing in the coming weeks.
People joke about curling, but it's very exciting to watch, probably the best thing to watch. I have a lot of respect for the curlers. I like curling. It's what gets me most involved during the Olympics.
The Winter Olympics will be held February 6–22.
