At 17 kilos lighter and with almost no muscle left in his body, Gustav Björkler had to rediscover what it meant to be a badminton player after battling blood cancer.
The Swedish shuttler was diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) in 2018 and underwent chemotherapy and a stem-cell transplant before being declared healthy in 2019.
“I didn’t have any muscle on my body at all. I was the same height, but almost 15 to 17 kilos less. So I didn’t have any physicality at all,” Björkler told PTI Videos after his match.
“It took some time to get these things back.”
The illness changed his perspective on life, making simply being healthy and returning to normal life more meaningful than results on a badminton court.
“Of course, it affects you mostly mentally, I think, and it gives you another perspective on life as a whole,” he said.
“You think of life in another way and you’re quite happy just to be healthy and to be able to live a normal life.”
Björkler said he never stopped believing that he would overcome the illness and eventually return to the highest level.
“That was something that helped me quite a lot when I went through the sickness. It really helped me to really push and just make the best out of it,” he said.
Now back competing at the highest level, the Swede does not want his cancer battle to define him.
“I’m just a guy that likes to play badminton and enjoying badminton life at the moment. I’m really, really blessed that I’m healthy now,” he said.
Move To Denmark For Better Training
Björkler has also had to find ways to develop as an elite player in Sweden, where badminton does not enjoy the same popularity as football or ice hockey.
He moved to Copenhagen to access better training and stronger sparring partners, believing the switch can help him progress.
“Badminton is of course not that big in Sweden so I made a move to Denmark. I live in Copenhagen, I practice there,” he said.
“Not so many youngsters play badminton. They play football, ice hockey… these kinds of things. We have to find solutions to get the right sparring and the right training.”
He has already represented Sweden at the Thomas Cup and faced top players such as Chou Tien Chen and Anders Antonsen.
Although his World Championships campaign ended in the opening round, Björkler remains focused on climbing the rankings.
“My target is to go back to the top 100 and just develop myself and be a better player and play the bigger tournaments,” he said.
For Björkler, the goal is no longer simply to prove that he could return after cancer.
It is to discover how far he can go now that he is healthy again — while continuing to enjoy the sport he loves.
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