How did you celebrate in Sweden after the win?
It was a very nice prize giving, my little daughter was with me, Anna and after we didn't celebrate so much. I was very tired. I remember Ewa telling me that if I win she would come to the United States with me because normally she would not come to these trials as they're so far away because she has two children. This win for me meant my family came to the United States for next year. I was very happy to win the World Championship and it was very emotional but most of all I was very relieved. I felt that the pressure was released from my body after all the years. I have been trying trying trying and then I win, it was a great feeling.
It was a very nice prize giving, my little daughter was with me, Anna and after we didn't celebrate so much. I was very tired. I remember Ewa telling me that if I win she would come to the United States with me because normally she would not come to these trials as they're so far away because she has two children. This win for me meant my family came to the United States for next year. I was very happy to win the World Championship and it was very emotional but most of all I was very relieved. I felt that the pressure was released from my body after all the years. I have been trying trying trying and then I win, it was a great feeling.
The year after, I also try to win, but there comes a Frenchman, Giles Burgat and he was very good. At the end of 1981, I was finished. I had a feeling that I was very very tired, at the end of 1980 there was a sense of great relief that I had achieved what I wanted to do and I had a big release of pressure. I worked hard in 1981, but looking back I was tired and close to the finish because I've had enough. I have been in this business a long time, I had run out of fuel, it was exactly this and it was because of this reason that I finish riding the trial very soon afterwards. Trials was our lives, we were number one at this time and it was an incredible moment. I didn't think too much about being number one at the time and it's only now really when I look back at what I did that I realised it was very big because there is only one that can be the best in the world, it is good, it is nice. I was the first Swedish trials champion of the world.
Did you become a fairly famous man in Sweden because of this?
I was in the papers and in the television for some time but I don't think I was so famous in Sweden, there is a competition where the people can vote for the best sports man every year and in this list I was 13 or 14, so this was quite good because of course Sweden has many top sportsman, especially in the rallying and the motor cycling. It was in Spain where I was much much much more popular, it was there in Spain that they also have a story in a newspaper. I think this was a solo moto newspaper. I was number one in this vote. I think maybe the famous rider Angel Nieto was number 2. I was the first man before this very very famous rider, so Montesa are very very happy with this situation, the whole of Catalonia was very happy. The people were very happy. Today they win a lot but of course it is not Montesa it is Honda, so I am the real world champion on Montesa.
I was in the papers and in the television for some time but I don't think I was so famous in Sweden, there is a competition where the people can vote for the best sports man every year and in this list I was 13 or 14, so this was quite good because of course Sweden has many top sportsman, especially in the rallying and the motor cycling. It was in Spain where I was much much much more popular, it was there in Spain that they also have a story in a newspaper. I think this was a solo moto newspaper. I was number one in this vote. I think maybe the famous rider Angel Nieto was number 2. I was the first man before this very very famous rider, so Montesa are very very happy with this situation, the whole of Catalonia was very happy. The people were very happy. Today they win a lot but of course it is not Montesa it is Honda, so I am the real world champion on Montesa.