Leo-Pekka Tähti, 40, talks about life after his career – A goal in a really surprising sport: “It’s missing”

Five Paralympic golds, four World Championship golds, ten European Championship golds: Leo-Pekka Tähti is one of the brightest stars of all time in disabled athletics.

However, at the 2021 Paralympics in Tokyo, Tähti finished second in the 100-meter wheelchair curling on his main trip, and since there were no prestigious competitions last year, he is supposed to take the scepter back in his possession at the World Para Athletics Championships starting in Paris this weekend.

– I’m hungry, that’s clear, and the goal is of course to win the world championship, Tähti confirmed on Thursday at Helsinki-Vantaa airport.

– But now the starting situation is a bit different. In the past, I’ve been a pretty clear early favorite in competitions, but now I’m more of a challenger. A medal is the minimum goal.

However, the fact that the top time in the world this season of 13.82 is in his name speaks for the brightest of the star’s possibilities.

– Tokyo Paralympic winner Athiwat Paeng-Nuea has reeled in 13.85 this year, he reminds of the danger of the young Thai.

– Based on the statistics, at least 4–5 guys are really close. A tight twist is coming. The margins are small, and everything has to be nailed down.

Three journeys

Tähti will also compete in the 400 and 800 meters in Paris. He has two European Championship golds and one silver in the track circuit, and one European Championship silver in two rounds. At the World Cup level, no medals have been won from these trips yet.

In the foursome, the Pori player is 11th in the season’s world ranking, and SE 46.73 is in his name.

– We definitely have to be able to break the Finnish record, and whether it will be enough for the final remains to be seen, Tähti aprikoi.

– Kasi is the last sport of the games, so it’s not out of the question in a way. In that sense, it’s easy to get started. I want to have a tactically good race and be as high as possible on the results list, but a place in the final would be a big surprise.

40 full

The star turned 40 on Midsummer.

– It doesn’t make it any easier at least when it’s a speed sport, he describes the effect of age on elite sports.

– The places are no longer in such a pristine condition as they were 15 years ago. You have to be aware of it and take better care of your body. You have to eat and sleep better and take care of your recovery. You can train with it full, but with it it is more precise when the sensitization starts before big competitions.

The star’s training season went well.

– I have stayed healthy. It is, of course, a prerequisite for being able to do work.

After career

The star has announced that he will end his career next year also at the Paralympics held in Paris.

Thinking about the time after his career as a professional athlete, he has completed a data science degree, and also has a professional coaching qualification in his pocket. Since 2021, he has also been spinning Leena-a marketing company with his sister.

– It is of course one that I want to develop, he says of Tähti Consulting ky, whose services are aimed at entrepreneurs, athletes and experts.

– And even though the top sports career ends in Paris 2024, the competition will continue, he elaborates.

He mentions the Finnish marathon record.

– I lack that, and I want to get it in my own name. Coaching is also close to my heart, and I’m still doing it right now. Esa-Pekka Mattila it’s for me to coach, Tähti referred to the wheelchair bowler who left for the WC in Paris on the same flight.

– It would be very interesting to stay involved in the sport and do more grassroots work so that we would have continuity in the future. Now it seems that there is no heir to the mantle in our T54 class with potential for the top. You have to dig them out from somewhere.

Basketball

The star is also a wheelchair basketball player. He has played in the Finnish, Russian and Spanish leagues and in the Finnish national team. He has been playing in the Spanish Velez-Malaga team since 2011.

– I really enjoyed the basket. It’s quite a passion, and my sports career started with it when I was 8 years old. It is a good counterbalance and supports my main sport, which I also enjoy very much.

For example, last winter, almost half of Tähti’s training was basketball and the other half was curling and strength.

– Yes, it’s a pretty tight package. When you sign a contract with a Spanish team, of course they expect some contribution from you.

During the training season, Tähti practices both basketball and curling every day. From Monday to Friday, he has two training sessions a day, and Saturdays are game days.

– Spain is a big country. The longest game trips are 1200 kilometers each way, and we go by bus.

The fourth place is the best achievement of Velez-Malaga, which belongs to the middle class of the Spanish league, during the Tähte period.

– After all, it’s a hell of a lot to drag through the season. That’s why there will be fewer baskets next season, because the focus is only on the Paris Games, Tähti says.

– In Koris, I mainly try to help the Finnish national team. After my career, there is one option that I will continue in the Malaga team.

Relationship

On the Sun Coast, Tähte is also loved by his Spanish common-law wife Merch. They met in the spring of 2019.

– He will visit Finland after the World Championships, Tähti says.

During the winters, the couple lives together in Spain. However, there is no need to ask Tähti about possible engagements.

– I don’t comment on these things, he laughs.