+ Per Erik "Särna" Hedlund, skiing – Olympic gold medal in the five-mile race in 1928
"The archetype of a Swedish skier: Boisterous, stubborn and went against everyone. Defied the leaders in the 1928 Olympics when he didn't want to ski in the all-blue national team suit - but in his own all-white one. After he won gold in the five-mile, Sweden has competed in white suits."
+ Jane Cederqvist, swimming – Olympic silver in the 400-meter freestyle in 1960
"The youngest to receive the Gold Medal of Merit, only 15 years old. She questioned the lack of money for an outdoor pool in Stockholm. It ended up with Eriksdalsbadet being built. She herself quit swimming just a year after the Olympics, to focus on her studies, and became director of the Historical Museum."
+ Stellan Bengtsson, table tennis – World Championship gold medal in singles 1971
"He was only 18 when he won. It was the shortest meeting in the history of the feat – it took 1 minute and 15 seconds according to the protocol. If you have to have an example of the archetype of a feat, it's his gold."
+ Pernilla Wiberg, alpine skiing – World Championship gold in giant slalom 1991
"Her breakthrough was also the breakthrough for a new type of sportswoman in Sweden. After her came the likes of Anja Pärson, Kajsa Bergqvist and eventually Carolina Klüft. Female stars who also took their place outside the competition arenas."
+ Carolina Klüft, athletics – World Championship gold in heptathlon 2003
"Sometimes athletes come along who have that special talent to be the best. At the championships she was completely uninhibited – she was working out, as if it was a training session. But underneath the surface she was of course very determined."
+ Armand Duplantis, athletics – double world record in pole vault 2020
"It was a year when almost all sports were down due to the corona, there were no Olympics or European Championships in football. So "Mondo" saved the Bragdguldet that year. That was almost the only thing that had happened. Got his second Bragdguldet in 2024."
Petter Nilsson/TT
Facts: Some of the favorites for this year's Bragdguld
TT
+ National ski team, women
Won six out of six World Championship gold medals in Trondheim and could perhaps be praised as a team for that feat. Ebba Andersson (two individual golds), Jonna Sundling (one individual gold, great relay hero and gold in sprint relay) and Frida Karlsson (one individual gold) could also be considered individually.
+ David Åhman and Jonatan Hellvig
The Olympic gold medalists from Paris came to the World Championships after knee problems for Åhman, but it was still another championship gold. As if that wasn't enough, it was the new young Swedish shooting stars, Jacob Hölting Nilsson and Elmer Andersson, who were defeated in the final in Adelaide.
+ Daniel Stahl
Secured another major championship gold when he – in the last throw – set a dream-like point for the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo. The 33-year-old discus thrower received the Merit Medal as late as 2023 when he won World Championships gold in Budapest in a similar way.
+ Maja Stark
The 25-year-old golfer from Abbekås won her first major title in her career when she won the prestigious US Open at Erin Hills. Stark thus became the third Swede to win the US Open, after Liselotte Neumann and Annika Sörenstam.
+ Andreas Almgren
Is a World Championship bronze enough to be included in the discussion of achievements? Yes, maybe when the bronze is taken in the 10,000 meters at the World Championships in Athletics. In Tokyo, Almgren became the first Swede to win a long-distance medal at the World Championships.
Svenska Dagbladet has awarded the Bragdguldet every year since 1925.
The inaugural year the award went to athlete Sten "Sten-Pelle" Pettersson. Last year, an athlete was also honored – Armand Duplantis.
Duplantis is one of five athletes to have received the Gold Medal of Merit twice – which is the maximum. The others are Björn Borg, Ingemar Stenmark, Anja Pärson and Sarah Sjöström.
Athletics has received the Bragdguldet the most times (21), followed by cross-country skiing (16) and swimming (9).
The winner is chosen by a jury consisting of twelve members – including Magdalena Forsberg, Mats Sundin, Tomas Brolin and Charlotte Kalla.
