MAGNUS ELIASSON THROWS RACKETS IN THE BIN

After five years at the top of the FIR World Rankings with 36 World Tour titles the probably best Racketlon player ever, Magnus Eliasson officially retires from Racketlon. The 40-year-old will not compete in the upcoming World Champs in Löhne/Hannover from 19. – 21. November. Before Finnish Open FIR-President Marcel Weigl met the 3-time World Champion in Singles and 7-time with the Swedish national team in Stockholm for his last interview.

Magnus, your retirement comes as a surprise to the Racketlon community. When did you make this decision?

After the disappointment of having to give up the World Championship final last year due to a cramp in the arm, I noticed I was getting old and I thought maybe that’s it for the first time. I was so confident that I could win, because I beat Mikko three times in a row before the tournament. The chances were at least 50:50, but maybe I over practiced Tabletennis before the tournament and I had a tough draw too. I had to give everything to even reach the final.

But you did still play Swedish Open this year and won it? Was the final your last serious match?

I just played in Malmö because I had some business to do there and thought ok then I might as well play. No, my last match was actually the final of the Swedish Championships in May, when I lost to Stefan Adamsson by a few points. That was the real turning point and then my decision was final. That’s it!

The Swedish national team is in danger of losing their first match ever if you don’t play. Did you not think of helping them during the World Champs this year?

As former captain of course I did and at one point I thought of going. Then I decided I won’t, because I can’t give 100% and would not have the right team spirit.

So what is the main reason for your retirement?

Well first of all I’m old, my body can’t train 3-4 hours per day any longer. That’s the amount I used to train and I need to be the best in the world. Secondly it’s a private thing too; I got the custody for my 13-year-old daughter Ebba back. She now lives with me and I have different priorities in my life.

Let’s go back to the beginning. What did you do before you started Racketlon?

I was a semi-professional ice hockey player for 13 years for top clubs like HV71 in the first Swedish league or Isserlohn in the second German league. At the same time I studied and achieved a degree in Civil Engineering, but in the end I hated machines.

Some players say you were a machine yourself, when did you start with Racketlon?

I had always played Racket Sports and competed in Tennis, so in the year 2000 I took part in the Racketlon Cup and beat Mats Källberg. Then I started to practice 5-6 hours (like a machine if you like) a day, took on all the best players at that time and beat Peter Bittar, Peter Landberg, Joakim Sandberg. I got in contact with Hans Mullamaa the inventor of the World Tour and it took me one year to become a world class player. At the same time I started to study Psychology and drove taxi to make money.

Is it true that you are the only player in the world that made money with playing Racketlon?

I can’t talk for the others, but I had sponsors who covered my travel costs in the first years and I had Babolat who gave me all the equipment for free. I would say in the last 3-4 years a quarter of my income came from playing Racketlon. Maybe I earned around 20.000 Euro in my whole career on prize money.

How do you earn your living today then?

In 2005 I founded my own company MFT – Mental Fulfilment Training with the aim of making people happy. I spend maybe around 10h per week giving Racket sports lessons on court, 10h per week with psychotherapy specializing on sportsmen and the rest of the time I teach maths and psychology at a high school working with kids, which have social problems.

In your Racketlon career what was your biggest disappointment and biggest success?

My biggest disappointment was Finnish Open 2004, when I lost the final to Mikko. I watched the video after the match and was thinking, what am I doing look how scared I was. But that was also the turning point only a few weeks later my biggest success followed. I won the World Champs in Vienna 2004 and I was on the top. Before that I was chasing Mikko and now I had him and was never so hungry for success any more.

Which was your favourite tournament on the World Tour?

Definitely Austrian Open and Im not saying that because you are asking. The organisation and setup was perfect, a milestone for Racketlon. The best arena I ever played was at the World Champs in Fürth last year, but then the time schedule was terrible.

As a player you were loved or hated, some people say you were unfair on court. What is your impression?

If anyone felt offended I want to apologize, but in my eyes its part of the game to push to the limits, to get into the opponents head and get him out of balance. I think I was a player with charisma and heart and that’s what the spectators want to see. In the end I only wanted to win and used all possibilities, but never broke the rules.

Do you feel you did not get enough appreciation for being the best player in the world?

I felt appreciated everywhere else except in Sweden. In my own country I felt the jealousy and the satisfaction to see me lose. This really hurt me emotionally and made me leave the court in Swedish Championships 2007.

To how many players have you actually lost in an official Racketlon competition match?

In a singles match without injury only three: Mikko Kärkkäinen, Stefan Adamsson and Roland Helle. Then I lost to Michael Dickert in the Austrian team competition, which was a nightmare and I lost to Rickard Persson when I had to give up due to twisting my ankle.

Over the past years, many new players from different countries have come in. Do you think the quality of Racketlon has improved since you started 2000?

Very much, I would lose to many players if I had not improved my game. As a comparison, I think if Magnus of today plays Eliasson of 2000, Magnus would win all sports under 10. But its natural, I spent 10.000 hours practicing since then to improve my game.

What was your main advantage compared to other players?

I think it’s the possibility to think of each point as a separate point. No matter what the score is, no matter what sports I was playing I tried to focus only on the one single point which was played next.

What is your last message to the Racketlon community and will you ever return to Racketlon?

Thank you Marcel and everyone involved for making our great sport grow. Keep it up, be patient I will try to give my support in future too if it is of any help. Speaking now I would say no I won’t come back as a player. I am the kind of person who can quit things and looks for new challenges. But who knows, you should never say never……

In the name of the Racketlon community FIR and many of our player thank you Magnus and wish you good luck with your future. We will especially miss your Racketlon battles with Mikko!