Swedish empire: SVT's sa Edlund J nsson talks ambition, adrenaline and live sports addiction International Womens Day 2021 focus By Heather McLean, Editor
Thursday, March 4, 2021 - 17:35
Print This Story
Hugely driven, ambitious and successful are terms well-suited to SVT's head of sports, sa Edlund J nsson. She has worked at the Swedish public broadcaster for over 20 years in a huge variety of roles, from reporter, anchor and commentator - being the first woman in the world to be a commentator on men's ice hockey on national TV - to project manager for news and the Olympics, head of online sports, head of sports development and project manager for the Swedish and European elections for the news department.
I seldom stay on the same spot for very long, Edlund J nsson says, explaining her career path at SVT. I look for challenges and I always wanted to oversee a whole organisation or department. In my eyes my role is the best job in the sports and media business in Sweden, with a huge variety of tasks on my desk every day.
Learn as much as you can about sports, production and broadcasting. Be the most curious person in the room, be brave and trust your instincts. And always be kind, that is an underestimated qualification
She adds that, the variety is the most exciting thing about her role as SVT's head of sports. We do everything from news to the biggest sports events for both linear TV and digital. One minute I deal with a complicated news story as publisher, the next minute I negotiate big sports rights together with my head of sports rights Jan Olsson, the best wingman there is.
Ultimately, the daily risks and challenges involved in dealing with live sports broadcasting give Edlund J nsson the adrenalin buzz she needs to stay motivated and keep pushing forward in her career.
She says: Sports and live television are without comparison the most exciting combination you can work with. You can plan all you want, but in the end, something might happen that turns all plans upside down.
sa Edlund J nsson with Detroit Red Wings hockey star Slava Fetisov during the Stanley Cup finals 1998 when she was working for Supersport at Canal+
A great story from last year was my team was about to broadcast [live] ice hockey when our commentator lost his voice right before face-off. I happened to be close by, so my commentator asked me to drive to the arena and take over. I thought it was a joke but went there, and minutes later I was on the air commentating on ice hockey, which I hadn't done in 15 years. Can it be more exciting?
Driving spirit
As head of sports, Edlund J nsson gets to compete in a fast-changing market and the competition for sports rights. I want to make sure that our big audience gets the best possible value for the public service fee, she says.
A significant example of this endeavour was the work she put into bringing the London Olympics to a Swedish audience. I was project manager and executive producer for the London Olympics for SVT, where I teamed up with (then head of production) Adde Granberg for the project, says Edlund J nsson. I wanted to bring every second of the Olympics to the Swedish audience, on all devices, both linear and digital. Today, that goes without saying, but ten years ago, no TV company did that. Adde (today CTO at SVT) is one of the smartest and most creative production people in the world and promised to help me on that vision if I trusted him on new production methods and new technology.
With a turnaround of less than one and half years this trust led to a big win at the Olympics. We at SVT did the first full-scale remote production in the world, using a fibre network, Edlund J nsson says. I remember our CEO constantly asking me about the non-existing OB vans and the non-existing master control in London. Our programming from the London Olympics is still the best-rated, by the audience, in the history of SVT [broadcast].
Commentating on ice hockey with professional commentator Jonas Andersson, sa Edlund J nsson can do it all
Kindness and competition
What advice would she give to other women looking to move into a role in sports broadcasting? Learn as much as you can about sports, production and broadcasting, she states. Be the most curious person in the room, be brave and trust your instincts. And always be kind, that is an underestimated qualification.
She also has a guiding philosophy: The Golden Rule is important to me, treat others as you want to be treated. I have tried to be friendly and inclusive during my career and I have felt I have been treated the same way, she says. At the same time, live sports and television are competitive fields, but if you are out there working, it means that you are part of the competition with a chance to win', meaning making your dream come true. It will take hard work, perhaps some sacrifices along the way, but only you can tell if it is worth it.
Playing to win
That love of competition and Edlund J nsson's passion for sport and journalism both began at home, playing a lot of sports while growing up in an, ice hockey-crazy town . Enthralled as a kid by TV coverage of international sports stars Bj rn Borg and Ingemar Stenmark, she also recalls her ten year old self being impressed by the dangerous work of foreign correspondents reporting from the Beirut barracks bombings in 1983.
I knew from an early age that I wanted to be a journalist, preferable a sports journalist on TV, she says.
SVT won the SVG Europe Award for Diversity in Sports TV 2020 for its gender-equal coverage. Here, sa Edlund J nsson is pictured holding the team's award
Edlund J nsson followed this up at secondary school with stints at the local newspaper, writing about sports, then studied journalism and television for three years. An internship at SVT follow
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
09/10/2026
September 10 2026, 06:00 (PDT) Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026
New Sports Intelligence helps providers better unders...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/09/2026
Mavis has launched Mavis Camera 8.2, the latest release of its professional camera app for the iPhone and iPad. This update brings support for iPhone 18 Pro and...
29/09/2026
Oak View Group (OVG) has announced Cisco as an Official Technology Partner, with plans to standardize infrastructure across its venue network on Cisco solutions...
29/09/2026
SportsNet Pittsburgh (SNP) won three honors at the 2026 Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards.
Program awards went to Bucs BP in the Sports Program Live category (produced ...
29/09/2026
The Professional Women's Hockey League has announced home openers for all 12 teams for the 2026-27 season, along with a broadcast partnership with CBC under...
29/09/2026
Manifold technologies has been recognized as a contributor to the Media eXchange...
29/09/2026
FuboTV has announced My Local Sports, allowing subscribers in select markets to add their local regional sports network (RSN) as an add-on to a Fubo Sports subs...
29/09/2026
Asian News International (ANI), a wire agency and video news provider based in India, has deployed Grass Valley's AMPP Media Operating System and Framelight...
29/09/2026
South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) has deployed Ikegami UHK-X600 cameras as part of an upgrade to IP-based production infrastructure. The deployment ...
29/09/2026
REMI, REMCO models will drive the bulk of the broadcaster's NHL productions ...
29/09/2026
Three years in, the facility is supporting more centralized race production, com...
29/09/2026
NBC, Peacock, and NBSN are carrying all four Wild Card series with a production ...
29/09/2026
19 Nonfiction Projects Across All Stages of Production to Receive More Than $1 million in Support as Documentary Film Program Approaches 25th Anniversary
LOS ...
29/09/2026
Two new plug-ins launch alongside updated bundles
Zynaptiq have just announced the launch of two new plug-ins, alongside new and improved versions of two of...
29/09/2026
All-in-one bus processor revealed
Wes Audio's ng product range has come a long way since it was first introduced, and now includes a tasty selection of ...
29/09/2026
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Ikegami announces that the South African Broadcasting Corporation, SABC, has chosen Ikegami UHK-X600 camera systems as part of an advance to IP-based operation ...
29/09/2026
Blendkit Offers 20% Discount to Celebrate Crossing 150K Asset Milestone
Brie Clayton September 29, 2026
0 Comments
Blendkit, the largest 3D asset libr...
29/09/2026
Interactive streaming specialist Ease Live supported more than 76.5 million fan sessions across three major European media operators during this summers FIFA Wo...
29/09/2026
Ease Live has added support for VAST (Video Ad Serving Template) to its graphical overlay technology, opening up new ways for broadcasters, streamers and rights...
29/09/2026
Rise AV has announced the launch of the inaugural Rise AV Awards, a new global awards programme celebrating the women, advocates and organisations across the AV...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
29/09/2026
Clear-Com announced that First Baptist Nashville has upgraded its production communications with a Clear-Com intercom solution as part of a comprehensive sanct...
29/09/2026
Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K Captured Action Shots for Sketch
Brie Clayton September 28, 2026
0 Comments
Camera's portable design and dynamic range...
29/09/2026
Kean Production Services Deploys AJA ColorBox to Deliver Consistent, Accurate Co...
29/09/2026
Berklee Alumni and Faculty Nominated for the 2026 Latin Grammy Awards A total of 28 Berklee alumni and faculty earned nominations across 20 categories this ye...
29/09/2026
Berklee's K-Pop & Beyond Explores Connections Between K-Pop and Hip-Hop Now in its fifth year, the series brings together artists, industry leaders, and s...
29/09/2026
We tend to think we live in a digital world, with hopes and fears around artificial intelligence (AI), quantum computing, data centres and the next big technolo...
29/09/2026
Today, in partnership with the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), Apple relea...
29/09/2026
Final Cut Camera, the professional filming app for iPhone, receives a major upda...
29/09/2026
RT lyric fm is proud to announce the annual Choirs for Christmas competition callout. Warm up those vocal chords and join us on RT lyric fm for a celebration ...
28/09/2026
The NHL has announced Adobe as an Official Creative, Marketing and AI Partner beginning with the 2026-27 season. The partnership will provide the league and its...
28/09/2026
MultiDyne will exhibit at CABSAT 2026 (October 5-7, Dubai Exhibition Centre), showcasing an expanded technology portfolio following its June 2026 acquisition of...
28/09/2026
ARRI and HONOR have announced the HONOR Magic9 Pro Max, a flagship smartphone carrying ARRI branding on the device and packaging as the first product-level expr...
Swedish empire: SVT's sa Edlund J nsson talks ambition, adrenaline and live sports addiction International Womens Day 2021 focus By Heather McLean, Editor 
