You have seen her as the face of several of our photoshoots -Terese a real Swimrun queen & Power Woman. From her early days on the football field to conquering some of the world’s toughest Swimrun races, including the prestigious ÖtillÖ World Championship. In this interview, she shares her journey, her love for nature-driven training, the challenges she’s overcome, and her advice for anyone looking to take their training to the next level.
Tell us about yourself!
My name is Terese Østeraas. I’ve lived in Borås for the past 20 years, but I’m originally from Trondheim, Norway!
What role does sports and training play in your life?
Sports and training have been part of my daily life for as long as I can remember — I don’t know life without it! I love training days and training camps, but nowadays as an adult, I also appreciate a calm rest day without training.
What sports do you do?
I played football (soccer) as a child and competed at the 2nd division level and on the district team in Trondheim until I was about 22-23 years old. During my childhood and teenage years, I pretty much tried every sport — from figure skating and athletics to handball and synchronized swimming. In my adult years, I’ve focused more on running, swimming, skiing, cycling, and also kayaking/surfski, climbing, and multisport have become part of my life in recent years. But my main focus has been on the sport I love the most — Swimrun.
How did you get started with this sport?
I started Swimrun in 2014 when I wanted to learn freestyle swimming (crawl) and needed a goal. A friend and I signed up for Borås Swimrun and started training for it. Honestly, it was quite unexpected that we even made it to the finish line that year — it was freezing cold, and we weren’t good swimmers. But that became the motivation to do another race, and soon after, we were asked to become Power Woman Ambassadors. The first year was amazing — as Team Power Woman, we made it onto the podium at several major races, which led to me never quitting Swimrun. I’ve kept going ever since, except for a couple of injury years in 2016–2017. After that, I focused quite a bit on major international races. A commitment I made during the pandemic led to many great results in the ÖtillÖ series, including completing the ÖtillÖ World Championship five times along with many other ÖtillÖ races. I absolutely love the ÖtillÖ races!
What do you love most about this type of training?
Nature, freedom, and the feeling of training outdoors. But I also love the challenges and new experiences that the ÖtillÖ races bring!
What has been the biggest challenge for you in your training?
My body — constantly trying to stay injury-free. I’ve had several major surgeries in my life: two ACL reconstructions, two meniscus surgeries, one ligament operation, one major abdominal surgery, plus a few minor procedures. There’s been a lot of rehab and long journeys back. My strength has always been the joy of coming back strong, standing on that start line again, and pushing through tough races. That’s been the driving force behind fighting my way back every time. Nowadays, I train based on how my body feels and hope it will cooperate for a few more years before I finally hang up my racing shoes!
What tips would you give to someone who has just started or wants to take their training to the next level?
Love what you do! Find the type of training that brings you joy. Write a training plan, eat nutritious food that supports your training, get good sleep, rest between sessions, and see yourself as an athlete. That mindset will bring results, and those results will motivate you to train even more! Sign up for some fun races and view them as a reward.
What are you most looking forward to right now? Do you have any specific goals, races, or new types of training you want to try?
My focus for the coming years will be on Swimrun, running, and skiing. After finishing in the Top 150 at Vasaloppet 2025, I have even bigger goals for 2026. And with Top 7 as my best placement at the ÖtillÖ World Championship, I still dream of achieving even better results in 2025–2026!
If you could meet a younger version of yourself, what would you tell her?
I would love to give a lecture to young girls, maybe host a training weekend where I share my journey — what I did and what I would do differently. There’s so much to talk about! But what I can say now is: believe in yourself, dream big, and never give up on your dreams. Don’t let negative energy bring you down and surround yourself with people who make you happy.
What makes you feel strong — like a Power Woman?
Since 2014, when I started my partnership with Power Woman, I’ve carried with me a sense of community, strength, and love for training. It gives meaning to what I do, motivates me to keep training, and drives me to inspire other women to dare to train, compete, and believe in themselves!
What’s your favorite garment from Power Woman?
I train exclusively in my Power Woman swimsuits and running shorts — I absolutely love them!
You can follow Terese on Instagram here
