The King: Now We Have Two Queens

King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia pay tribute to the double Olympic gold medalist Sarah Sjöström. Now we have two queens here, says the king.

» Updated: September 20 2024

» Published: August 05 2024

The King: Now We Have Two Queens
Photo: Jonas Ekströmer/TT

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The royal couple has landed in Paris ahead of the final Olympic Games week. They will, among other things, watch Armand "Mondo" Duplantis compete in the pole vault on Monday evening.

But before that, they managed to fit in a celebration at the Sweden Arena, the media center that the Swedish Olympic Committee has arranged in the French capital.

Two Queens

From a stage in a courtyard, the king praises the double gold medalist Sarah Sjöström.

Now we have two queens on the podium here, it's not bad. Then you can see who you prefer best, I can't reveal that just yet.

Sjöström took gold in the 50 and 100 meter freestyle events and wrote herself into the history books once again. The king's praise didn't want to end.

This is incredibly fun for all of us gathered here, especially for Sarah who has made a real double. It's not every day you get to do that. And the queen and I came directly from the flight here, of course. I almost said "bullseye" on the beetroot.

When asked how the king is as a swimmer himself, he responds:

Oh, I get by somehow. But I'm not exactly a great swimmer, it's been a long time.

"Fantastic"

Sweden has seven medals at the time of writing and can get an eighth if Duplantis takes gold tonight. The pole vault final is underway. Queen Silvia is very impressed with the Swedish athletes.

It's fantastic, Sweden has been good in several events and yesterday's gold was fantastic, and the silver in table tennis, you shouldn't forget that either.

Regarding Duplantis' chances, the king says that great things can happen.

We'll have to keep our fingers crossed, but an Olympic Games and big competitions are something else than regular competitions. But on the other hand, some people get extra motivated. Sometimes great things can happen. It would be a shame if he didn't succeed, after all.

"A Wonderful Speech"

Sjöström, who has now taken six medals, including three golds, in five Olympic Games, appreciated the speech.

It was a wonderful speech, I heard that many people laughed and appreciated his words, she says, and responds to the question of what it's like to be called a queen.

You have to thank for that.

Corrected: An earlier version contained an error regarding how many Olympic Games Sarah Sjöström has participated in.

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By TTEnglish edition by Sweden Herald, adapted for local and international readers

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