Practically all the main domestic competitions of the 2022 season were over by Midsummer.
The domestic athletics competition season 2022 was strange, because it was practically over in Midsummer as far as the main events were concerned.
– The situation was rough and unique, says Iltalehti’s athletics expert Arto Bryggare.
Four of the six GP races were held by June 18. The best of these was Kuortanene’s race. The Paavo Nurmi Games in Turku were organized on June 14, 2022. In Midsummer there was a ranking race in Oulu, but in July-September there were only two GP events on the program, the Kaleva races and the Sweden match.
– The effect was not so much on Swedish match-level athletes, but on those below them. The situation was modest from the point of view of the spectators as well.
The World Championships in Eugene were organized in July and the European Championships in Munich in August. This partly affected the schedules of the main domestic competitions.
Bryggare also puts the operation of the state media house on hold. Yleisradio is the media partner of the Finnish Sports Association, so its program map partly dictates the competition schedules.
– The Finnish public wants to see Finns competing consistently throughout the summer. When Yle offers its own palette, the Sports Confederation must understand that it offers a calendar that better serves athletes and spectators.
Changes
Paavo Nurmi Games is Finland’s highest quality athletics competition. Pictured is high jumper Ella Junnila. Roni Lehti
In the squeeze of two prestigious competitions, the calendar of the Diamond League and other tough international competitions was tight. In Bryggare’s opinion, in Finland, sports could be held at the same time as big events.
– There are 0–3 Finns participating in the Diamond League competition at any one time.
In the summer of 2023, the World Championships will be held in Budapest from the 19th to the 27th. August.
– The connection between the Kaleva Games and the Sweden match is obvious, so they should be on consecutive weekends after the prestigious games.
– Admittedly, the Kaleva Games next summer will probably be the last show place in Budapest, as the World Championships are quite late.
The Kaleva Games 2023 will be held in Lahti on July 27-30, 2023. According to the preliminary calendar, Paavo Nurmi Games will be in its current location on June 13.
– The Finns need to focus on Turku, because with the current ranking system there is a significant distribution of points there, Bryggare states.
– It would be important to get an event of a similar magnitude to Helsinki in July, he continues.
In the United States, relay races between clubs are a prestigious event. In Finland, the SM relays are usually held in early September, according to next year’s preliminary calendar, September 9–10.
– The timing doesn’t work. The SM relays should compete in June-July at the same time as the sports carnival.