Winner of Lidingöloppet

Linus Hultegård

We first met Linus Hultegård just as he crossed the finish line at the 2020 edition of the legendary (for Swedish runners at least) cross-country race Lidingöloppet. What drew our attention was not just the fact that he was the first among a group of specially invited elite runners to have cleared the slippery 30K but the fact that he was all smiles despite just having pulled off a really hard sprint to stay in the lead and despite a seriously bloody knee. As he was hugging his wife and daughter we got curious to find out more about what had gotten him to this point…

The first time we met you had just won the Lidingöloppet Men’s 30K cross-country race. What was it like?

A: It was a fantastic experience. It’s a feat I never thought I’d live in my career as a runner. Of course circumstances were a bit special in 2020 with no international elite runners present [due to Covid-19 restrictions] but a win is always a win. And the fact that this win was secured through a hard sprint at Grönsta Gärde [the field that runs up to the finish line] doesn’t make things worse. Where I come from in Småland a lot of people participate in the Swedish Classics (En svensk klassiker) sports events series [of which Lidingöloppet is an integral part] so Lidingöloppet has always had a special place in my heart and historically I have been monitoring the results in this race closely.

 

 

 

 

What went through your mind during the race?

I went to the race well aware that it was a bit too close to the Swedish Marathon Championships which had taken place just three weeks earlier but once I started running I felt that the prior race hadn’t taken too much of a toll on my body so I decided to go for it and focus on my own thing. After merely 1K however, I slipped in a tight corner and scraped my entire left knee but after a while I got back into my groove again. I felt strong but was cautious not to start advancing too soon in the leading group of runners. Then after about 10K someone gave me a nod to take the lead which actually suited me perfectly as it started to get hillier which really is my thing. So I upped the pace [given Linus’s finish time of 1:43:46 this means he picked up from say 3:30 towards 3:25 pace] a bit and I noticed early on that I was getting a gap behind me that kept growing. Somewhere around 20-25K into the race it started to sink in that I was actually in the lead and that I would win if I managed to hold it together. It was truly magical to allow myself to have that thought… but then with merely 3K left I started experiencing stomach cramps and had to slow down significantly and with a tiny 1K left the guy behind me caught up meaning I would have to sprint in order to stay ahead. So I did. Hard. And knowing that my wife and newborn daughter were waiting for me at the finish line I just couldn’t let this win go.

Was this win always a goal for you?

No, I never really thought I’d ever have a realistic chance of winning this legendary race so I can’t say that this has been a long term goal of mine. I’ve rather had my mind set on specific finish times. But, when I did get the special invite to the 2020 edition I did start to set my mind on a top 3 spot given the circumstances.

Why do you run?

I work as a surgeon at the Sahlgrenska hospital in Gothenburg which at times is really demanding with long hours and while this may sound as a bit of a paradox running has become even more important to me over time as it has become a means to take my mind of things, a means to socialize as well as a sort of meditation.

Winner of Lidingöloppet

Linus Hultegård

We first met Linus Hultegård just as he crossed the finish line at the 2020 edition of the legendary (for Swedish runners at least) cross-country race Lidingöloppet. What drew our attention was not just the fact that he was the first among a group of specially invited elite runners to have cleared the slippery 30K but the fact that he was all smiles despite just having pulled off a really hard sprint to stay in the lead and despite a seriously bloody knee. As he was hugging his wife and daughter we got curious to find out more about what had gotten him to this point…

The first time we met you had just won the Lidingöloppet Men’s 30K cross-country race. What was it like?

A: It was a fantastic experience. It’s a feat I never thought I’d live in my career as a runner. Of course circumstances were a bit special in 2020 with no international elite runners present [due to Covid-19 restrictions] but a win is always a win. And the fact that this win was secured through a hard sprint at Grönsta Gärde [the field that runs up to the finish line] doesn’t make things worse. Where I come from in Småland a lot of people participate in the Swedish Classics (En svensk klassiker) sports events series [of which Lidingöloppet is an integral part] so Lidingöloppet has always had a special place in my heart and historically I have been monitoring the results in this race closely.

What went through your mind during the race?

I went to the race well aware that it was a bit too close to the Swedish Marathon Championships which had taken place just three weeks earlier but once I started running I felt that the prior race hadn’t taken too much of a toll on my body so I decided to go for it and focus on my own thing. After merely 1K however, I slipped in a tight corner and scraped my entire left knee but after a while I got back into my groove again. I felt strong but was cautious not to start advancing too soon in the leading group of runners. Then after about 10K someone gave me a nod to take the lead which actually suited me perfectly as it started to get hillier which really is my thing. So I upped the pace [given Linus’s finish time of 1:43:46 this means he picked up from say 3:30 towards 3:25 pace] a bit and I noticed early on that I was getting a gap behind me that kept growing. Somewhere around 20-25K into the race it started to sink in that I was actually in the lead and that I would win if I managed to hold it together. It was truly magical to allow myself to have that thought… but then with merely 3K left I started experiencing stomach cramps and had to slow down significantly and with a tiny 1K left the guy behind me caught up meaning I would have to sprint in order to stay ahead. So I did. Hard. And knowing that my wife and newborn daughter were waiting for me at the finish line I just couldn’t let this win go.

Was this win always a goal for you?

No, I never really thought I’d ever have a realistic chance of winning this legendary race so I can’t say that this has been a long term goal of mine. I’ve rather had my mind set on specific finish times. But, when I did get the special invite to the 2020 edition I did start to set my mind on a top 3 spot given the circumstances.

Why do you run?

I work as a surgeon at the Sahlgrenska hospital in Gothenburg which at times is really demanding with long hours and while this may sound as a bit of a paradox running has become even more important to me over time as it has become a means to take my mind of things, a means to socialize as well as a sort of meditation.

Have you always been a runner? When, where and how did you get hooked?

I’ve always been into running and have had talent for it. While still in school running, or rather racing, was a source of anxiety as I once won a competition that made my class a ton of prize money which only resulted in everyone in my class assuming that I would secure a win for them the next year and the next. That pressure to win put me off running for a bit and got me into team sports instead so I played football, floor hockey and handball. In all the sport’s I played it was obvious that my strength was in running however. So during my last year of high school I did a school project out of running the Göteborgsvarvet [a highly popular half-marathon on the scenic streets of Gothenburg where the photos for this story were taken] including reading up on how to schedule my training and how to optimize my nutrition.

 

 

 

 

Have you always been a runner? When, where and how did you get hooked?

I’ve always been into running and have had talent for it. While still in school running, or rather racing, was a source of anxiety as I once won a competition that made my class a ton of prize money which only resulted in everyone in my class assuming that I would secure a win for them the next year and the next. That pressure to win put me off running for a bit and got me into team sports instead so I played football, floor hockey and handball. In all the sport’s I played it was obvious that my strength was in running however. So during my last year of high school I did a school project out of running the Göteborgsvarvet [a highly popular half-marathon on the scenic streets of Gothenburg where the photos for this story were taken] including reading up on how to schedule my training and how to optimize my nutrition.

Was this the run up to when things started getting serious?

Running took off for real for me just as I started studying medicine in Gothenburg. I had mostly been playing football until then but suddenly having a gap in my match schedule I started running intervals for the first time. After a while I signed up for Midnatssloppet in Gothenburg [a 10K race that’s serious business for some and more of a party run for others] and managed to pull off a sub35. The following summer we were a group of students from my class who decided to go to Alta, way up in northern Norway, to work for eight weeks. Already on day 2 I packed a bag, got my running gear and went for a run up the highest mountain in the area. Having reached the peak I met a Norwegian, also in running gear, who thought I was crazy to have come up with the same idea as he had so we exchanged contact details and when I got back I decided to get in touch. This got me connected to a group of elite cross-country skiers who were living in Alta and allowed me the opportunity to train with people who had medals from world championships as well as from Vasaloppet. Once I realized that Not only could I keep up with them when we were running but also beat most of them this became the trigger I needed to start taking my running seriously. So back in Gothenburg I quit football and started running on a daily basis.

Speaking of the stuff you do on a daily basis, can you tell us more about your line of work?

I’m a medical doctor specializing in surgery on blood vessels at the Sahlgrenska University Hospital. It’s a career path that I started thinking about already in my early teens as I was diagnosed with gluten intolerance and started getting first hand experience of the healthcare system. Ever since I had my mind set on always doing well in school in order to put myself in a position where I could choose medical studies later on should I still have the interest. So it really came from that rather as nobody else in my family has chosen a career in medicine.

Given the demands of your job, how do you find the time for running at the level you’re at?

There’s no question about the fact that it takes a lot of planning but while running does consume a lot of time it also gives tons of energy so a lot of my trading takes place early in the mornings before I start my shifts. All my gear is laid out and the coffee machine is already prepped so I’m good to go as soon as the alarm clock goes off. I also run a lot with my wife who has also caught the running bug. If this hadn’t been a mutual interest of ours I would probably have struggled to justify the amount of time I spend on running.

You’ve recently had your first child, which obviously also means new demands on you, so how do you
combine dad life, a medical career and running?

This isn’t a paid commercial or anything but for me it’s spelled Thule Glide [a high-end baby stroller for jogging made by the Swedish brand Thule]. What a gift to parents! Our daughter, Hedda, has enjoyed sleeping through lots of K’s worth of running. At first I would do the runs on my own while my wife, Evelina, got some well deserved time on her own, and then eventually we would do long runs as a family.

What’s the best part about being a dad?
It’s hard putting it in words. It’s as if twice the amount of color options were suddenly added to the color palette of life. All of your feelings grow stronger. Seeing your child laugh and thrive is just impossible to describe. When I won the Lidingöloppet this all became very clear as meeting my daughter at the finish line all of a sudden made the race pale in importance.

Lastly, at what upcoming races can we be at the starting line with you in the near future?
Göteborgsvarvet [September 11, Gothenburg] and Stockholm Marathon [October 9, Stockholm].
Best of luck!

PS: You can follow Linus on Strava.

Was this the run up to when things started getting serious?

Running took off for real for me just as I started studying medicine in Gothenburg. I had mostly been playing football until then but suddenly having a gap in my match schedule I started running intervals for the first time. After a while I signed up for Midnatssloppet in Gothenburg [a 10K race that’s serious business for some and more of a party run for others] and managed to pull off a sub35. The following summer we were a group of students from my class who decided to go to Alta, way up in northern Norway, to work for eight weeks. Already on day 2 I packed a bag, got my running gear and went for a run up the highest mountain in the area. Having reached the peak I met a Norwegian, also in running gear, who thought I was crazy to have come up with the same idea as he had so we exchanged contact details and when I got back I decided to get in touch. This got me connected to a group of elite cross-country skiers who were living in Alta and allowed me the opportunity to train with people who had medals from world championships as well as from Vasaloppet. Once I realized that Not only could I keep up with them when we were running but also beat most of them this became the trigger I needed to start taking my running seriously. So back in Gothenburg I quit football and started running on a daily basis.

Speaking of the stuff you do on a daily basis, can you tell us more about your line of work?

I’m a medical doctor specializing in surgery on blood vessels at the Sahlgrenska University Hospital. It’s a career path that I started thinking about already in my early teens as I was diagnosed with gluten intolerance and started getting first hand experience of the healthcare system. Ever since I had my mind set on always doing well in school in order to put myself in a position where I could choose medical studies later on should I still have the interest. So it really came from that rather as nobody else in my family has chosen a career in medicine.

Given the demands of your job, how do you find the time for running at the level you’re at?

There’s no question about the fact that it takes a lot of planning but while running does consume a lot of time it also gives tons of energy so a lot of my trading takes place early in the mornings before I start my shifts. All my gear is laid out and the coffee machine is already prepped so I’m good to go as soon as the alarm clock goes off. I also run a lot with my wife who has also caught the running bug. If this hadn’t been a mutual interest of ours I would probably have struggled to justify the amount of time I spend on running.

You’ve recently had your first child, which obviously also means new demands on you, so how do you
combine dad life, a medical career and running?

This isn’t a paid commercial or anything but for me it’s spelled Thule Glide [a high-end baby stroller for jogging made by the Swedish brand Thule]. What a gift to parents! Our daughter, Hedda, has enjoyed sleeping through lots of K’s worth of running. At first I would do the runs on my own while my wife, Evelina, got some well deserved time on her own, and then eventually we would do long runs as a family.

What’s the best part about being a dad?
It’s hard putting it in words. It’s as if twice the amount of color options were suddenly added to the color palette of life. All of your feelings grow stronger. Seeing your child laugh and thrive is just impossible to describe. When I won the Lidingöloppet this all became very clear as meeting my daughter at the finish line all of a sudden made the race pale in importance.

Lastly, at what upcoming races can we be at the starting line with you in the near future?
Göteborgsvarvet [September 11, Gothenburg] and Stockholm Marathon [October 9, Stockholm].
Best of luck!

PS: You can follow Linus on Strava.