This year, exceptionally, the selections were already announced before the Sports Gala.
Jarkko Nieminen is Finland’s most successful tennis player of all time. PDO
The five newest members elected to the Finnish Sports Hall of Fame have been announced.
This year’s selections were exceptionally announced already before the Sports Gala. Those selected will be awarded at Thursday’s gala.
Sports Hall of Fame, elected
Jarkko Nieminen, tennis
Kyra Kyrklund, horse riding
Marjo Matikainen-Kallström, cross-country skiing
Olli Mäki, boxing
Sami Elopuro, squash
Will be added to the gallery of honor Jarkko Nieminen, Kyrka Kyrklund, Marjo Matikainen-Kallström, Olli Mäki and Sami Elopuro.
Nieminen is the most successful Finnish tennis player of all time. At his best, he was ranked 13th in the ATP ranking.
Kyrklund is the most successful Finnish rider. The trophy cabinet includes, among other things, World Cup silver in dressage.
Matikainen-Kallström, who achieved 11 prestigious medals, won both the Olympic gold and the world championship in cross-country skiing. He has also been chosen as athlete of the year three times.
Boxer Mäki will be inducted into the gallery of honor posthumously. He won the European championship and fought for the World Championship title. The film The Smiling Man made about him has won numerous awards.
For years, Elopuro was one of the best squash players in the world. At his best, he was sixth in the world ranking. He won, among other things, World Championship bronze and nine European Championship medals in the Finnish team between 1986 and 1996.
The first names of the Finnish Sports Hall of Fame were announced in 2010. The selection is carried out by the cultural center for sports and physical activity, Tahto. The criteria selected are “the sports heroes of our generation, who have been among the world’s best in their sport and thus influenced the construction of national identity.”