SwedEN

In Sweden, a magnificent stadium was constructed for the 1912 Olympic Games. There was no question of leaving the expensive building as a mere monument after the conclusion of the five-ring games. By August 1921, it had already hosted the Swedish Athletics Championships for the fifth time.

Fast Lilja

Among the stars of the meet was sprinter John Lilja, who raced down the track in a trance-like state. He achieved his only career victories in the championships of his country by winning both the 100 and 200 metres in a spectacular fashion. He also set personal bests: 10.7 and 21.9 seconds. If the Finnkampen (Sweden vs. Finland match) had been held in 1921, these results would have trounced the Finnish athletes.

The middle-distance events were dominated by two-time Olympian Sven Lundgren, who sprinted to victory in the 800 metres and 1500 metres. The Stockholm lad accumulated a total of eight Swedish championships in the European mile and half-mile over his career.

Both hurdling events were taken by Carl-Axel Christiernsson, an international level hurdler who made it to the finals in three Olympic Games. Like Lundgren, he won eight Swedish championships in the 110 metres and 400 metres hurdles, as well as the pentathlon. Christiernsson clocked 55.2 seconds for the lap, just a tenth of a second off his personal best, which had secured him a third place at the English Championships some weeks earlier.

World-class performance by Backman in the 5K

Internationally, perhaps the most impressive performance came from long distance runner Eric Backman, who later worked at the Volvo factory. With his winning time of 15:10.8 in the 5000 metres, he would have ranked among the top three in the world had he not run a few seconds faster in June. However, the Swedish chain-smoker did not quite reach the level of Paavo Nurmi.

Twenty-year-old Lars Tirén cleared the bar at 3.90 metres (12-9 1/2) in the pole vault. This result earned him third place in the 1921 world rankings. He later ceased to achieve further success and instead focused on earning his master's degree. Tirén managed to hold the Swedish record for seven years.

Sweden's best hammer thrower who already participated in the Stockholm Olympic Games, Carl-Johan "Massa" Lind, hurled the hammer 50.05 metres (164-3). This result secured the fourth place in the world rankings of the season.