Truls Möregårdh: The people's choice athlete of the year revitalising table tennis in Sweden
Not many people can take down Olympic stars like Armand Duplantis and Sarah Sjôstrôm for one of Sweden's biggest sporting prizes. They are, after all, two of the country's biggest sporting icons with global recognition.Yet that is exactly what Truls Möregårdh achieved in January, collecting the prestigious Jerringpriset prize awarded by Swedish public radio at the annual Idrottsgalan, the Swedish Sports Awards, in Stockholm.It is an audience-voted "people's choice" award for athlete of the year – and the table tennis star from southern Sweden was crowned the victor over his compatriots, both of which are Olympic champions and world record holders.He became the first table tennis player to win the individual award. But when you dig deeper, perhaps it should not come as that much of a surprise.It was a testament to how, even in a country famed for producing table tennis legends like Jan-Ove Waldner and Jörgen Persson, Möregårdh has helped revitalise the sport.
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