During the World Cup competition in Gothenburg, Robin Naeve was approached by Peder Fredricson with an unusual question: whether he would be willing to exchange his German nationality for Swedish. The 27-year-old show jumper agreed and will officially represent Sweden in team competitions starting next year.
Naeve, whose mother is Swedish and who lived in Sweden from age twelve to seventeen, holds dual nationality. However, when he dedicated himself to equestrian sports, he returned to Germany. At the end of February, he met Peder Fredricson in Gothenburg, who immediately brought up the idea: “On Saturday, Peder asked me, ‘You have Swedish nationality too, right? Could you imagine riding for Sweden? We have a strong team, but we lack depth in the squad. It’s a great team, and we support each other.’”
Future Plans with the Swedish Federation
The following day, Naeve had a conversation with Swedish national coach Henrik Ankarcrona, who shared his vision and explained how the transition could work. “He told me about his plans and emphasized that he is fully committed to the Swedish federation, without personal horse ownership or business interests,” Naeve told Spring-Reiter.de. “That gave me confidence. In Germany, there is a broad range of riders, so the pressure is lower. Sweden, on the other hand, has to work hard to ensure continuity in the squad.”
With his switch, Naeve hopes to be a valuable addition to the Swedish team and contribute to their future successes.
