Sarah Sjöström Back in The Arena at Swim Open; Outlines Sprint Goals for Sixth Games at LA 2028
Sarah Sjöström has confirmed she’ll make her competitive return at next month’s Swim Open in Stockholm, a little over seven months after becoming a mum to son Adrian.
The Swede also outlined her intention to compete in the 50 free and fly at what would be her sixth Olympics in LA in 2028, 20 years after her Games debut in Beijing.
Sarah Sjöström: Photo Courtesy: Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
The three-time Olympic champion and husband Johan de Jong Skierus became parents for the first time in August 2025 when they welcomed Adrian.
Sjöström was back in the water a little more than a month later and now she is set for competition once more at the Swim Open which runs from 9-12 April in the Swedish capital.
Speaking to the Swedish Swim Federation – Svensk Simidrott – Sjöström confirmed her comeback in home waters where she’ll contest the 50 free with her eyes on the European Championships in Paris.
“It’ll be exciting to make a comeback,” she said. “There’s been other things and there still are. But I still think swimming is so much fun, so I am going for it and thought why not make a comeback when it’s in Stockholm anyway? I’m very happy with where I am right now so I feel that I didn’t need to stress trying to be where I was, I’m just enjoying the process I’m in right now.
“I see progress every week but there’s no requirement that I have to get any specific placing or time.”
Step By Step With Eyes On Europeans
The Europeans take place at the Olympic Aquatic Centre in Saint-Denis with the pool programme running from 10-16 August.
With 28 medals, Sjöström is the most decorated swimmer in the history of the European Championships. Her ambitions are somewhat different at this moment in time although further continental silverware is among her goals this year.
Sarah Sjöström: Photo Courtesy: Andrea Staccioli / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
“If there’s a time I want to make it’s just to qualify to the European Championships,” she said. “It’ a bit strange compared to what I might have set as a goal a few years ago. But now that’s my level. And the next step I maybe to compete for a medal at the Europeans but I’m not there yet.
“But in a few weeks I think I will have gotten closer. I’m driven by finding the right feeling and enjoying the everyday grind. The race I swim at a competition is such a tiny part of it all. But I really enjoy the day-to-day work and I’m not saying it’s the most exciting thing in the world to swim back and forth in a pool but I like the feeling of getting stronger.”
The 32-year-old will solely compete in the 50 free in Stockholm. She hasn’t done any fly in her training although she’s hoping to return to the event in which she has held the world record of 24.43 since July 2014.
Plans For A Tilt At A Sprint Double At Her Sixth Games
A sixth Olympics beckons for Sjöström and should all go well for her, she’ll join a small elite group of swimmers who’ve competed at six Games comprising fellow Swedes Therese Alshammar and Lars Frolander, Tunisian Oussama Mellouli, Derya Buyukuncu of Turkiye and Kristel Köbrich of Chile.
She made her bow at Beijing 2008 aged 14 and since then has won three golds among six medals, including the 50/100 free double at Paris 2024.
Sarah Sjöström: Photo Courtesy: Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
In an interview with Swimming World weeks after the Paris Games, Sjöström said she would concentrate on the 50s.
She reaffirmed this in her interview with the Swedish federation, saying: “Now it’s all about sprinting. That’s what I’m aiming for.
“So in the LA Olympics, the 50m butterfly and the 50 freestyle. “But now I’m doing one event to start with, then I’ll add the 50 butterfly when I feel that my body is ready for it.
“It’s still only seven months since I had a baby. I’m aiming for the Europeans this summer and then the World Championships (in Budapest) next summer and then it’s the Olympics.
“Those are the three championships I see ahead of me.”
Neither does she intend to compete in any European or world short-course championships. She will though have to gain 50 fly qualification for LA at a World Cup stop in Europe next year. “You want it to fit and if it’s in Europe it’ll fit me.”