Mattsson also completed the series of Olympic and World Cup medals for the European Championships.
From Pori Matti Mattsson finished second in the 200m breaststroke at the European long course swimming in Rome.
Mattsson had to bow to the British to James Wilby, whose winning time was 2:08.96. Mattsson’s silver time fell to 2.09.40.
“It was fine, but at the end it started to freeze a little and the traction started to decrease, but the first hundred was a lot harder than yesterday,” Mattsson said in an interview with Yle.
Mattsson was second in the 50-meter heats, but led the race halfway, and that boded well.
“It didn’t work until the very end. Of course, you have to be satisfied with the silver medal, but it’s still a little disappointing.”
Mattsson admitted that, of course, he started swimming for the gold and that was what the semifinals promised, when he was the fastest in the semifinals.
“It [kultamitali] would have been easily overcome, but it’s pointless to worry about it.”
Mattsson, 28, took bronze at the Tokyo Olympics last year and was subsequently named Sportsperson of the Year.
The first one once Mattsson really broke into the big swimming circles when he won bronze at the World Championships in Barcelona in 2013. Then Mattsson even dared to talk about an Olympic victory.
However, there were more difficult years for the career and a new rise began before last year’s Tokyo Games, which resulted in a prize, even if it wasn’t exactly gold.
“Of course, this is a big thing, that such a straight can be done,” Mattsson said to Yle, referring to the medal haul of three prestigious tournaments.
“The right things have been done and it is good to continue.”
Mattsson reminded that Rome is a legendary swimming place for Finns, when Jani Sievinen and Antti Kasvio scooped up success and medals in the same city 28 years ago.
“Unfortunately, we didn’t get to listen to the Maamme song today.”
Helsingfors Simsällskapi Laura Lahtinen finished seventh in his own semi-final of the 200-meter breaststroke and qualified for the final. Lahtinen swam a time of 2:27.60.
In the splits, Lahtinen, 19, hung on in fifth place, but had to bend a little in the last 50 meters.
“Yes, I knew that I would be able to swim on the 27th, as I said in the morning. Considering how it felt, it was hard,” Lahtinen said in an interview with Yle.
Lahtinen regretted not being able to keep his swim together, when the frequency increased in the final stretch phase.
Breaststroke was not Lahtinen’s main competition, but those swims are still hot.
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