During the Swedish Sports Gala on Monday, January 20th, celebrating the best sporting moments of 2024, Truls MÖREGÅRDH won the prestigious Jerringpriset, the people’s choice award. This marked the first time since the award’s inception in 1979 that a table tennis player claimed the honor. In a highly competitive field that included Olympic champions Armand DUPLANTIS (pole vault), Sarah SJÖSTRÖM (swimming), and David ÅHMAN/Jonatan HELLVIG (beach volleyball), Truls emerged victorious, standing on stage with Swedish sports’ most coveted prize.
Truls MÖREGÅRDH was deeply moved during his acceptance speech, expressing heartfelt gratitude to his parents:
“Thank you so much; I’m truly in a state of shock. I want to thank all of Sweden for the incredible support this year; it’s been absolutely amazing. It’s so much fun to see all the table tennis fever that’s been created in Sweden. I want to thank everyone who has supported me in every way possible; you know who you are – thank you so much. I’d like to thank two people a little extra today: mom and dad. Thank you for everything you do for me. You are truly the best parents in the world. I would never be where I am today without you. I love you. Thank you!”
At the same gala, Jörgen PERSSON, the now-retired Swedish men’s national team coach, was honored as Coach of the Year for leading the Swedish team to remarkable achievements in 2024. In his acceptance speech, PERSSON reflected on his journey and expressed his gratitude:
“A big thank you! I stood here 24 years ago and received an award as a team player. And now I’m standing here again, but this time as a leader. I could hardly have dreamed of this. It feels incredibly good. I naturally want to thank my table tennis federation, who believed in me as a leader. I am very grateful for that. Also, a big thanks to the Swedish Olympic Committee, who have supported table tennis all these years! The team sitting down here in front of us (Kristian KARLSSON, Anton KÄLLBERG, Truls MÖREGÅRDH)—without them, I would never have been standing here! I also want to take this opportunity to thank Mattias FALCK, who was part of the team, our physiotherapist Mikael HOLM, who has meant so much, and Jon Persson, who assisted me at the Olympics as an assistant coach. I have so many more people I could thank. I’ve learned so much from my former national coaches over the years. But I won’t go through all of them now, as that would make for a very long speech,” stated PERSSON.
