This mark is still the European record and ranks him third on the world all-time list behind Javier Sotomayor and Mutaz Essa Barshim.

Sjöberg was born in Gothenburg, Västra Götaland, and was a member of the Örgryte IS club.

He has inspired many later Swedish high jumpers, most notably Kajsa Bergqvist, Linus Thörnblad, Staffan Strand, and Stefan Holm.

His world record of 2.42 m was broken 15 months later, when, on the eve of the Seoul Summer Olympics, Javier Sotomayor jumped 2.43 m in September 1988 at a meet in Spain.

Sjöberg, who is a survivor of child sexual abuse, is co-founder of the website Dumpen.se, a website that exposes pedophiles and discusses issues relating to child grooming and sexual abuse.