Bo Eric Michael Josjö (born 30 August 1961) is a Swedish former sprinter. He was an eight-time Swedish champion and held the Swedish record for the men's

400 metres The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor running track, it is ...

from 1981 to 2001. He represented Sweden at the

1983 World Championships in Athletics The 1st World Championships in Athletics (; ) were run under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations and were held at the Olympic Stadium (Helsinki), Olympic Stadium in Helsinki, Finland between 7 and 14 August 1983 ...

and the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and commonly known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the ...

Biography

As a child, Josjö played

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

and dabbled in

athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competitio ...

as a

middle-distance runner Middle-distance running events are track races longer than sprints, ranging from 500 metres up to . The standard middle distances are the 800 metres, 1500 metres and mile run, although the 3000 metres may also be classified as a middle-distanc ...

. He switched to sprinting as a 15-year-old after his athletics club, Turebergs IF, called him to run

in a club dual meet and he did well despite an almost complete lack of training; realizing his potential, he started training seriously under coach Jan "Bobby" Strandberg and developed rapidly. Josjö won his first national championship title at 400 metres in 1980 as an 18-year-old. In 1981 Josjö was Swedish champion over 200 metres (21.09) and won the DN-Galan 400 metres in 45.63, defeating a strong international field. The time was a new Swedish record; Josjö never improved it again, and it lasted until Jimisola Laursen ran 45.54 twenty years later. Josjö was selected to represent Europe at the

1981 IAAF World Cup The 3rd IAAF World Cup in Athletics was an international track and field sporting event sponsored by the International Association of Athletics Federations, held on September 4–6, 1981, at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, Italy. Overall results ...

in Rome in the

4 × 400 metres relay The 4 × 400 metres relay or long relay is an athletics track and field, track event in which teams consist of four runners who each complete 400 metres or one lap, totaling 1600 meters. It is traditionally the final event of ...

; the European team of Josjö, Fons Brijdenbach, Koen Gijsbers and

Hartmut Weber Hartmut Weber (born 17 October 1960 in Kamen) is a retired German track and field athlete who competed in the 400 metres. At the 1982 European Championships he won the gold medal with a lifetime best of 44.72 seconds. He also helped win the 4 � ...

placed second behind the United States. In 1982, Josjö was Swedish champion at both 200 and 400 metres. At the 1982 European Championships in Athens he represented Sweden in both the individual 400 metres and the 4 × 400 metres relay; in the individual event he was eliminated in the heats, while the Swedish relay team qualified for the final and placed eighth. Josjö was an

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

n sprinter for the

SMU Mustangs track and field The SMU Mustangs track and field team is the track and field program that represents Southern Methodist University. The Mustangs compete in NCAA Division I as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference. The team is based in University Park, Texa ...

team, finishing 4th in the 4 × 400 m relay at the 1983 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Josjö also competed in both the individual 400 m and relay at the inaugural 1983 World Championships in Helsinki; his best race there was in the relay heats, where he split an estimated 45.79 on the second leg as Sweden qualified for the final. In the individual 400 metres Josjö faded in the final straight in both of his races and went out in the quarterfinals. At the

in Los Angeles Josjö competed only in the relay; Sweden qualified from the heats on time, but was eliminated in the semi-finals. Josjö regained his Swedish titles at both 200 and 400 metres in 1985; in total, he was Swedish champion four times at 200 metres (1981, 1982, 1985 and 1988) and four times at 400 metres (1980, 1982, 1983 and 1985). The final years of his athletic career were marked by

Achilles tendon The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcane ...

problems, leading to his retirement from athletics in 1989. After 1989 Josjö concentrated on his new career as a photographer and did not remain involved in sports. In 2016, Josjö began exhibiting work through the

Art of the Olympians Art of the Olympians (AOTO) is an organization and program of Olympian and Paralympian artists that promotes the Olympic ideals of values, integrity, character, respect, honor, and work ethic through exhibitions and educational programs. It puts ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Josjo, Erik 1961 births Living people Athletes from Stockholm Swedish male sprinters Swedish photographers Athletes (track and field) at the 1984 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes for Sweden 20th-century Swedish sportsmen SMU Mustangs men's track and field athletes Turebergs FK athletes