Lasse Virén does not consider the international championships a good reason not to attend the match against Sweden.
An endurance running legend Lasse Virén74, doesn’t understand why many of Finland’s top athletes miss the weekend match against Sweden.
There are 14 athletes from the Finnish Sports Association’s first coaching team on the sidelines from the country match. Among them are the javelin thrower Oliver Helander and 400m hurdles SE woman Viivi Lehikoinen.
Sporty and a high jumper Heta Tuuri will compete on Saturday in the Chinese Diamond League.
– I think the so-called World Cup competitions and others are not as important as this one. Finland and Sweden compete equally. Everyone should be here, says Virén.
According to Lasse Virén, the national match should come before other games. Jussi Saarinen
Tuuri does not have an athlete contract with the Sports Association that obliges him to participate in a national match. Lehikoine has such an agreement.
Chairman of SUL Riikka Pakarinen said on Thursday to Iltalehti that Lehikoinen will receive a sanction for breach of contract. Virén is in favor of it.
– The rules should be clear. If it’s off, something happens, the legend goes.
We wanted to join
Viivi Lehikoinen will compete in China instead of Stockholm. PASI LEISMA
Virén competed 13 times in the Swedish match in his career and won six. At that time, the national match was one of the highlights of the season.
– Everyone more than anything wanted to join. There was no such thought that you should be away.
Virén ran in the national competition for the first time in 1969. The Finnish talent, only 20 years old, won the 5,000-meter race.
– I wasn’t supposed to win, but to be one of Finland’s representatives. The win gave a boost to many future competitions. Nobody expected me to win.
World record
Lasse Virén unveiled his own plaque. Jussi Saarinen
The corner of Virén’s eye moistened at the occasion. Jussi Saarinen
Virén is one of the three Finnish runners who received his own plaque on the Walk of Fame next to Stockholm’s Olympic Stadium on Saturday. They also received a tribute Hannes Kolehmainen, SpongeBob Nurmi and Swedish Inga Gentzel.
– I was happy when I received an invitation here. After all, this is a great memory for future generations, my own children and grandchildren. This feeling is hard to describe. I’m too sensitive to these things, Virén said, the corner of his eye moistening.
Stockholm’s Olympic Stadium is a special place for Virén, as he ran the two-mile world record (8:14.0) in 1972.
The top result came just a couple of weeks before the Munich Olympics.
– Almost everyone who went to Munich was in that competition. My coach still didn’t believe at the end that the world record would come. I solved the game 200 meters before the finish, Virén recalled.
– Maybe after doing ME, I got a mental upper hand in Munich.
The statute of limitations?
Lasse Virén still follows sports and politics. Jussi Saarinen
Virén, who worked as a member of parliament for the coalition between 1999–2007 and 2010–2011, still follows the politics of the day. He wonders Petteri Orpon (kok) the government’s communication published this week, which defined racism.
– It’s a bit far-fetched. These should not interfere with the government’s activities too much.
Virén already told Iltalehti in July that he doesn’t like it, among other things Riikka Purran (ps) old writings have been made public.
– People have changed. In many other cases, the statute of limitations for crimes is 10 years. Politician’s sayings are so old that they don’t change today.