In August two years ago, Sarah Sjöström won her second Olympic gold medal in Paris. In August 2025, the swimming star became a mother for the first time.
Back in the French capital - but now in a different pool for a championship comeback after the birth of her son Adrian - Sjöström has now won her 18th European Championship gold medal in the long course. It was her sixth in the 50-meter butterfly and her 97th championship medal overall.
There was no stress coming back, but I came back to a good level, so it's great fun, says Sjöström.
I haven't had any special goals, I've just trained because I think it's fun, and then it went well.
Sarah Sjöström entered the competition as the gold favourite and has not disappointed anyone. The 32-year-old was the fastest of all in the heats, as well as in the semi-finals, and in the final she won by a margin of seven hundredths of a second, ahead of second-place Roos Vanotterdijk from Belgium.
Sjöström's winning time was 25.05. 46 hundredths behind Sjöström was the race's other Swede, Sara Junevik, who took bronze in 25.51.
It's so damn fun, Junevik tells SVT.
The gold means that Sjöström is close to the European Championship gold record in long course held by former German swimming star Franziska van Almsick. In terms of the number of medals, Sjöström is already the biggest.
- Sarah Sjöström, Sweden, 18 gold, 7 silver, 4 bronze.
Franziska van Almsick, Germany, 18, 3, 0.
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Katinka Hosszu, Hungary, 15, 6, 4.
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Heike Friedrich, East Germany, 11, 2, 0.
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Therese Alshammar, Sweden, 10, 7, 4.
Source: Swimmingstats.
Gold (18): 100 meter butterfly (2008, 10, 16, 18), 50 meter butterfly (2012, 14, 16, 18, 22, 26), 100 meter freestyle (2012, 14, 16, 18), 50 meter freestyle (2018, 22), 4x100 meter freestyle (2014), 4x100 meter medley (2022).
Silver (7): 50-meter freestyle (2014), 100-meter butterfly (2014), 4x100-meter medley (2010 and 14), 4x100-meter freestyle (2012, 22), 4x200-meter freestyle (2014).
Bronze (4): 4x100 meter freestyle (2008, 10, 16), 4x100 meter freestyle mixed (2022).
