After finishing Birkebeinerrennet, the 25-year-old’s heart suddenly stopped. He was lucky and was already at the medical service point, on what probably saved the Pro Team athlete’s life.

“Now I’m doing pretty well, but I still can’t train more than at a very low intensity,” says Simon Jonsson from Ski Team Göhlins, the Pro Team he started with Isak Nilsson just over three years ago.

It doesn’t get more dramatic than what Simon Jonsson experienced on March 17, 2024, in Lillehammer, Norway.

“I don’t remember anything from the whole day, not even that I skied the Birken. But up on the mountain, I asked for a massage on my neck, so apparently, I didn’t feel so good. After the race, I picked up my stuff and told my teammates I wasn’t feeling well.”

That was lucky because Simon Jonsson went to the medical service points with his friends. That’s when his heart stopped, and things suddenly became much more dramatic.

“My heart stopped for 12 minutes. But I got help right away and was rushed by ambulance to the hospital in Lillehammer. From there, I was flown by helicopter to the cardiac intensive care unit at Ullevål Hospital in Oslo.”

The skier was in a coma for 24 hours. The doctors saved his life, but he had to stay in the hospital in Oslo for a week. Jonsson works as a biomedical analyst:

“Yes, I work a lot with hearts. After the finish, I felt strange and told my friends that taking an ECG would have been interesting.”

Then his heart stopped, and life changed for Simon Jonsson in seconds. It could have ended much worse, but he doesn’t want to think about it today.

“I now have a defibrillator implanted, but right now I’m on sick leave again as there were some problems with a wire.”

He says he is not scared after what happened, but despite many tests, the reason why he suffered cardiac arrest and coma has not been found. After all, he was a highly trained skier who had done the whole Ski Classics circuit.

Simon comes from Jönköping and grew up with national team skier Eric Rosjö.

“It was actually him who got me to start skiing. We have followed each other in IF Hallby,” Jonsson says and tells Langd.se that he has been in the top 10 at the Swedish Junior Championships and has had results of around the top 30 at the Swedish Championships as a senior.

Hopefully, Simon Jonsson will also participate in next season’s Ski Classics, but then as the Pro Team Director for Ski Team Göhlins, which has made some solid signings for the coming season.

“Yes, Johannes Eklöf is also an old Hallby resident, so that’s good.”

Read More: Prato Piazza Mountain Challenge winner joins Ski Team Göhlins

Earlier this June, it was confirmed that the Swedish Pro Team athlete Julia Angelsiöö is joining Ski Team Göhlins. Her most significant achievement so far is 14th place at both Årefjällsloppet 2021 and Prato Piazza Mountain Challenge 2022. Still, she has shown over the seasons that she has the potential for more solid results and improvements.

“We are happy to announce that we have another new addition to Ski Team Göhlins! Julia, who has her roots in Storvreta, has previously competed successfully for Team Næringsbanken Stora Enso. It will be exciting to see her in our colors and we are looking forward to a really good season. Welcome to the team, Julia,” writes the Pro Team on their Instagram.

Ski Team Göhlins: Pro Team Director about Season XV

Ski Team Göhlins is based in Gnosjö, Småland. They have just completed their third season in Ski Classics and ended up in 28th place overall in the Pro Team competition, meaning they are not guaranteed a Pro Team license for Season XVI. Still, Pro Team Director Simon Jonsson is hopeful:

“Even though we didn’t quite reach our goal of being in the top 25 in the Pro Team competition this season, we’re not too worried. We are determined to solve it next season. We still have young and hungry skiers, and we believe we can develop our team and participate in Ski Classics.”

In an interview with Langd.se and ProXCskiing.com, Simon Jonsson, Pro Team Director, reflected on the team’s performance during Season XV and what’s next for the Swedish Pro Team.

Read More – Ski Team Göhlins: Pro Team Director about Season XV