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ÒI took up curling in 1999, after watching SwedenÕs womenÕs team, skipped by Elisabet Gustafson, win the bronze medal at the Olympic Winter Games Nagano 1998. I gave it a try, and straight away I was hooked. To me, curling has a little bit of everything Ð strategy, skill, physical ability and maybe the most important thing; itÕs extremely social!ÓÒIÕm really looking forward to PyeongChang 2018. Pretty much all we do now is for those Olympic Games and hopefully we can go there better prepared than ever before. WeÕll be competing a bit less this season to get more quality training sessions in. WeÕve got a new second after Kristian [Lindstršm] needed surgery and a long recovery after the past season. So this season will mostly be about making the team stronger and better prepared for the Olympic season. Being healthy and mentally strong are definitely the key factors for us in 2018.ÓÒAs in any team sport, having the right team-mates is obviously very important. Maybe even more so in curling as we spend well over 300 days a year together, and on tour itÕs just the four of us trying to be as good as we possibly can. I want to have competent and ambitious people at my side. If anyone on the team didnÕt work as hard, it wouldnÕt be a good team for long. Team spirit is very important too. Every individual needs to take full responsibility to make things work Ð both on and off the ice. The team can only be as strong as the weakest link.ÓÒDuring the season, our training is mainly curling practice on the ice, running, strength training at the gym, and then theoretical and mental training as well. ThatÕs pretty much every week, every year! But in summertime we donÕt have ice to practice on, so we focus more on the other stuff instead.ÓÒI hate losing. I can get really grumpy when we lose, because I donÕt accept mistakes and I always want to improve. But I think itÕs the right attitude to have. Over the years, IÕve calmed down quite a bit and try to be as good as I can towards all the people around me on the curling sheet or curling rink because I think itÕs in the interest of the sport Ð like golf, where you show respect to one another.ÓINSPIRATIONPYEONGCHANGTRAININGATTITUDEMINDSETTEAMWORKÒThe mental side of curling is more important now than ever before. As the sport develops and the players and teams improve, we all have to make better and faster decisions. We have worked with a sports psychologist for as long as I have played at the elite level.ÓFollow Niklas on the IOC Olympic Athletes’ HubOLYMPIC REVIEW 59DESTINATION PYEONGCHANG