Swedish Volleyball Legends Relive the Glory of 1989

For the older generation, they are heroes.
For the younger generation, they are practically mythical legends.
During the European Championship in Göteborg, many members of the silver medal-winning team from the 1989 European Championship have been sitting in the stands. Famous and anonymous at the same time.

“You get vibes from the matches at Globen,” says Lasse Nilsson after the Swedish women’s team has just finished an attack and received deafening applause from the crowd at Scandinavium.
The players, all now in their sixties, are reminded from time to time of their memorable run against the Soviet Union, which led to the final against Italy at Globen on October 1, 1989. Back then, as many as 14,263 spectators filled the arena, which, from above, was shaped like a volleyball.

“Except back then there was no DJ,” says Bengt Gustafsson with a laugh. Sweden’s great attacking star was named both MVP (Most Valuable Player) and best spiker after the tournament.

Urban Lennartsson, the left-handed wing spiker and passer, adds: “The atmosphere here is incredibly good, and now there are a lot of entertainment elements too. It’s much more intense now than back then. Back then, it was silent in the arena between rallies.”

The team from the 1989 European Championship still stays in regular contact, and this weekend’s celebrations in the stands at Scandinavium provided several of them with a great opportunity to meet again. Naturally, they are also following the progress of Swedish volleyball on all fronts with great interest and pride.

“The last time we saw the women’s national team was in Ängelholm – that was also a spectator record,” Urban recalls.

Bengt adds: “We like spectator records.”

The bond between the former players remains strong, built on many shared memories. From the early 1980s through to the mid-1990s, they experienced an era that included European silver, World Championship appearances and Olympic participation.

This time, two of the players also experienced another, quite different reunion – with the opposing coach from the 1989 final, Julio Velasco, who is now successfully coaching Italy’s women’s national team.
He was happy to see the Swedish players again and, of course, remembers the defeat at Globen with warm feelings.
“Of course I remember, but I also remember him,” he says with a smile, pointing at Bengt Gustafsson.
“Bengt caused me a lot of suffering, both with the national team and at club level, when he was at Parma and I was coaching Modena.”

They embrace, and Gustafsson confirms the renowned coach’s account.
“There were many battles on the court,” he says with warm respect, still speaking flawless Italian.
Italy’s European Championship triumph in Stockholm marked the beginning of a long and successful golden era for the Italian men’s national team. But according to Julio Velasco, the rivalry with Sweden had begun even before that championship.

“In 1988, when the team had a different coach, Italy lost the Olympic qualifier for Seoul in a decisive match against Sweden, 3–0, in front of 10,000 shocked Italian home supporters in Florence.” That defeat provided the Italian squad with extra motivation for the journey that followed, eventually leading to the final meeting in Stockholm.
“I watched the match in Florence and could certainly see what a good team Sweden had going into the European Championship, but we were lucky to manage to beat them on their home turf.”
Italy went on to win three World Championship titles in a row. “It was a great period,” he says.

Velasco also sees potential in the Swedish women’s team beyond their big star, Isabelle Haak.
“They cause us trouble from the wings, with Anna Haak and Hanna Hellvig among others, but they also need to keep developing. There are good young players who need to keep playing against tough opposition to take the next step. With more experience and stronger serve reception, they will grow. Some things you can only develop through matches. It’s also tough to lose a strong middle blocker like Gun Hindgren ahead of the championship,” says Velasco.