Halfvarsson has some experience to back up such a statement. The 36-year-old made his debut in the national cross-country team 17 years ago, with top skiers like Marcus Hellner, Johan Olsson, Daniel Rickardsson and Anders Södergren to look up to.
At the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, the year after Halfvarsson joined the national team, the Swedish men won two gold and two bronze medals and had three skaters among the top nine in the final five-mile race.
A different world compared with this year's Olympics in Val di Fiemme.
"I should have stayed home," jokes Calle Halfvarsson, but he says more seriously:
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"It's embarrassing that things are going so badly for us today."
Worst bet ever
When the men's Olympic cross-country skiing competitions concluded on Saturday, Gustaf Berglund could at least claim a strong ninth place. But Calle Halfvarsson was 24th, 12 minutes and 40 seconds behind winner Johannes Høsflot Klæbo, and Johan Häggström moved into the position behind, over 13 minutes from the lead. Sweden did not even field a full team after William Poromaa fell ill.
The best performance for the Swedish men was Truls Gisselman's seventh place in the skiathlon, which meant the worst Swedish men's Olympic performance of all time.
National team manager Anders Byström seems a little tired of the subject, but notes that the top team didn't really exist during this year's Olympics, as the biggest stars Edvin Anger and William Poromaa had unsuccessful championships.
"Yes, that's the only thing we've talked about here," says Byström.
"Of course it's really sad. I understand that the headlines are like that, but you have to tone it down a bit. We've still won more and more medals at championships in recent years, last year was our best in ten years, and everyone forgets that."
Last Olympic race
The effort is still too poor, says the elder Halfvarsson, who is "one hundred percent certain" he has completed his last Olympic race.
"We have to think about what has gone wrong. Now we have had illnesses in the team too; look at Edvin (Anger) and Wille (Poromaa), who should have been top candidates and rode really well at the World Championships last year. But something has gone wrong," says Halfvarsson.
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Men's coaches Anders Högberg and Lars Ljung are on contracts that expire after the season. Naturally, their futures are now under scrutiny, with the home World Cup in Falun just a year away.
"I have worked with them for five years and they have done a great job. So now we have to decide whether it is sufficient development or whether we need to make changes. It is too early to say," says Anders Byström.
Lasse Mannheimer/TT
Wiktor Nummelin/TT
Facts: The best Swedish men in each Olympic race
TT
Sweden's men's cross-country skiers took seventh place at best during the 2026 Winter Olympics. It is the worst men's performance ever at an Olympics.
The best Swedish placings in the races in Val di Fiemme:
Skiathlon: 7th, Truls Gisselman.
Sprint, classic: 9th, Alvar Myhlback.
10 kilometers, freestyle: 20th, William Poromaa.
Relay: 10th (last of all teams).
Sprint relay, freestyle: 10th, Johan Häggström/Edvin Anger.
50 kilometers, classic: 9th, Gustaf Berglund.
