The World Championship in Doha is over and the Swedish world number seven Truls Möregårdh can, after World Championship silver and Olympic Games silver, add a World Championship bronze to his collection of medals at the highest international level.
"Do you think Truls' achievements come from a Swedish table tennis model for talent development or similar? Forget it. Nothing could be more wrong".
The passage is taken from the table tennis star's book "Think like Truls", which is released on Monday and which he has written with his father Carl Möregårdh.
"Sparse with medals"
The years after J-O (Waldner) and Jörgen (Persson) were very sparse with medals. You can't forget that the table tennis model didn't work so well those years and then we wanted to try something different, says Truls Möregårdh to TT.
In the book, the Jerring prize winner writes about the mental game behind the Olympic Games silver last summer, he gives tips to young table tennis talents and describes his signature strokes.
Most of all, it's about "Team Truls" own recipe for talent development.
It will probably stick in some people's eyes to read the book, but I hope more that it is received as something very educational and inspiring. In the end, we're just sharing how we think, says Truls, who has been focusing full-time on table tennis since he finished high school.
We want to tell with performance as a hub. The literature on talent development rarely leans against any form of results, says Carl Möregårdh.
It's two very different things to develop a talent that reaches the world elite and to get young people to stay in the sports world as long as possible, they write in the book. Breadth and talent must be allowed to compete on their own terms.
A tailored effort at a young age usually goes against the Swedish sports model, but it's possible to have two thoughts in your head at the same time, they point out.
We have competed by training in a special way. Have fun, come up with the strokes I want to do, and then dare to do it in the match. And train and compete a lot, but always have fun, says Truls, who took World Championship silver in singles in 2021 as a 19-year-old.
In a younger age, the own way could consist of choosing to skip youth national team camps because training against older players at home in Eslöv gave more.
In an older age, one of the choices is about getting to have his big brother Malte Möregårdh as a coach even at national team competitions. He has been the table tennis star's private coach full-time for four years.
Problematic with the national team captain?
After a conflict with the association during the winter, the big brother finally got to be a coach during the World Championship last week, and now the family raises the question of another form of organization.
It may even be that it's quite problematic to have a national team captain, says Carl Möregårdh.
Truls Möregårdh emphasizes that, for example, Japan has another solution with match coaches to specific players.
With all our successes in recent years, I think it's very easy to solve something similar even in Sweden, says he.
Daniel Kihlström/TT
Facts: "Think like Truls"
(TT)
(TT)
Boken "Think like Truls" is written by table tennis star Truls Möregårdh and his father Carl Möregårdh.
The brother and coach Malte, mother Lena and close friend David Andersson make guest appearances with their own sections.
The book is published by Mondial on May 26.
(TT)
Born: February 16, 2002.
Occupation: Table tennis player.
Lives: Malmö.
Club: Eslövs AI.
World ranking: Seventh.
Main merits: World Championship silver in singles 2021 and World Championship bronze in singles 2025, Olympic Games silver in singles and Olympic Games silver in team 2024, World Championship bronze in team 2018.
Other: Voted by the Swedish people to win Radiosport's Jerring Prize 2024.
