Samuelsson's Shooting Struggles Cost Sweden a Medal at 2026 Winter Olympics Mixed Relay

Sebastian Samuelsson's shooting difficulties in the mixed relay at the 2026 Winter Olympics severely impacted Sweden's medal hopes, resulting in a fifth-place finish. Samuelsson began his leg strongly with perfect prone shooting, but faltered in the standing position, missing five shots overall and taking two penalty laps, which dropped Sweden temporarily to 18th place. Despite his teammates Martin Ponsiluoma, Anna Magnusson, and Hanna Öberg improving the position to fifth by the end, the gap to medalists France, Italy, and Germany was too large to overcome.

Samuelsson described his performance as "hemsk" (terrible) and blamed mental strain and pressure, especially competing at altitude (1,600 meters), saying, "Huvudet. Huvudet" (the head, the head) was where it went wrong. He expressed deep disappointment, stating, "I’m very disappointed with my performance here. I had hoped to do much better."

Experts criticized Samuelsson's preparation strategy, particularly his choice to compete at lower-altitude venues instead of acclimatizing earlier at altitude prior to the Olympics, which may have impacted his shooting steadiness. SVT’s Björn Ferry and TV4’s David Ekholm raised concerns about his training decisions, while Swedish coach Johannes Lukas defended the approach, emphasizing the value of competitive experience and downplaying altitude concerns for upcoming races. Lukas did note concerns regarding Ponsiluoma’s own struggles at altitude during his relay leg.

Samuelsson recalled overcoming adversity before, such as during the 2023 World Championships, highlighting that setbacks can be turned around. Amidst support from teammates and coach, he remains focused on future races, hoping to regain confidence. The Olympic biathlon schedule continues with men’s distance events starting February 10.