Ekholm has won four medals in European Championships and another bronze in women’s team in 2014.
STOCKHOLM (Sweden): A leading figure for Sweden on the biggest of stages Matilda Ekholm has decided to retire from the sport on Friday.
The 37-year-old has grown into a well respected competitor on the international scene. She shares her experience and future plans an in-depth interview with ITTF.com.
Excerpts
SD: Matilda, you’ve enjoyed a long and successful career in the sport, but how were you originally introduced to table tennis?
ME: I grew up in a small village called Vikingstad and there were only two sports you could play there with a coach so I did both, and they were table tennis and soccer. I turned out to be better at tt so that became my priority when I had to choose. My brother also played and we were both inspired by the success of the Swedish players of the late 80’s era.
SD: Your style of play is very distinctive, utilising half distance top spin to great effect. Did this come to you naturally or was it something you picked up in coaching?
ME: 100% natural. It always felt more natural for me to hit the ball at a later stage and also I was never fast enough to keep up with the tempo closer to the table, so I had to find my own solution to that. My style was also formed by always practicing with boys during my teenage years and early 20’s. My game is uncomfortable for many women as they aren’t used to that style.
SD: What are your interests off the table, do you have any hobbies that you enjoy in particular?
ME: My hobbies off the table vary but throughout my life video games has been the biggest constant. I mostly play Nintendo games and right now I’m spending time social distancing by socialising with my friends in Animal Crossing.
SD: From your perspective looking back was there breakthrough moment which you felt really helped you establish yourself as a top player?
ME: It’s hard to say because I was always improving and slowly going from top 200 to top 20 during a period of almost 15 years. But, in 2005 I beat a top player for the first time: Jiang Huajun from Hong Kong, and that made me realise I can actually play at a high level.
SD: Following on from the previous question, is there any tournament outing in particular that really standouts out for you?
ME: Last 16 at the World Championships in 2015 was maybe my best result, but the performance in my home country, Halmstad 2018, was probably my favourite and most memorable. I won all my matches in the group stage, beating Feng Tianwei among others!
