maanantai 11. kesäkuuta 2012
sunnuntai 25. syyskuuta 2011
"THE FINNISH POWER", and ONE OF THE EUROPEAN BEST FOOTBALL/SOCCER PLAYER: JARI LITMANEN from FINLAND ( SUOMI - FINLAND )
Jari Litmanen
 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Jari Olavi Litmanen | ||
| Date of birth | 20 February 1971 | ||
| Place of birth | lahti, Finland | ||
| Height | 1.82 m (5 ft 11 1⁄2 in) | ||
| Playing position | Attacking midfielder Second striker | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | HJK | ||
| Number | 10 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1977–1987 | Reipas | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1987–1990 | Reipas | 86 | (28) |
| 1991 | HJK | 27 | (16) |
| 1992 | MyPa | 18 | (7) |
| 1992–1999 | Ajax | 159 | (91) |
| 1999–2001 | Barcelona | 21 | (3) |
| 2001–2002 | Liverpool | 26 | (5) |
| 2002–2004 | Ajax | 20 | (5) |
| 2004 | Lahti | 11 | (3) |
| 2005 | Hansa Rostock | 13 | (1) |
| 2005–2007 | Malmö FF | 10 | (3) |
| 2008 | Fulham | 0 | (0) |
| 2008–2010 | Lahti | 40 | (10) |
| 2011– | HJK | 7 | (1) |
| Total | 436 | (172) | |
| National team | |||
| 1989– | Finland | 137 | (32) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals). | |||
Jari Olavi Litmanen (
He is widely considered to be Finland's greatest football player of all time.[1] He was chosen as the best Finnish player of the last 50 years by the Football Association of Finland in the UEFA Jubilee Awards in November 2003.[2] Litmanen also finished 42nd in the 100 Greatest Finns voting in 2004. The Association of Football Statisticians' (The AFS) compendium of 'Greatest Ever Footballers' listed Litmanen as the 53rd best footballer ever.[3] In Finland he is often called "Litti" (after Pierre Littbarski), which dates from his early years in Finland; his childhood playmate Tommi Kautonen was "Auge" after Klaus Augenthaler. He is very often also called "Kuningas" ("The King").
Litmanen was the long-time captain and is currently the second-choice captain of the Finnish national team, in an international career lasting two decades. During his club career he has represented Reipas, HJK, MyPa and Lahti in Finland, as well as Ajax, FC Barcelona, Liverpool, Hansa Rostock, Malmö FF and Fulham abroad. Once considered one of the best attacking midfielders in the world,[4] he became the first Finnish footballing superstar while playing for Ajax in the mid-1990s. He was a key player in the Amsterdam side that won the 1995 Champions League.
Contents |
Club career
Early career
Litmanen made his first-team debut for Reipas in Finland's then top division Mestaruussarja at the age of 16 in 1987. Around this time he also played ice hockey and it was said that he was among the most gifted young hockey players in Reipas.[5] After four seasons with Reipas he moved to HJK, Finland's biggest club, in 1991. A year later he joined MyPa, where he was coached by Harri Kampman, who later became his agent. Litmanen did not win any medals in the Finnish league, but he did win the Finnish Cup with MyPa in July 1992, in a 2–0 win over FF Jaro in the final at the Helsinki Olympic Stadium. His performance in the cup final, including a goal, convinced a scout of Ajax that the club should sign him. "For me, he was the player," the scout later told the Finnish television. His transfer then took place later the same year.
Ajax
Prior to his move to Ajax, Litmanen had missed a contract with a top Romanian team FC Dinamo Bucureşti, where he was refused. He was eventually chased by a host of European clubs, at least by Barcelona, Leeds United and PSV Eindhoven,[6] but in the end it was Ajax who bought him.
Ajax team manager David Endt, who as the person responsible of the staff in Ajax around that time, described his first impression of Litmanen to the Finnish broadcasting corporation YLE in 2010:[7]
| “ | The press conference is over, and in comes Jari Litmanen, from behind the door. And I looked at his face and I looked at his eyes, and I recognised something in those eyes. And I thought, this is a man with a great willpower. Because he was not shy, not timid, but he was modest. He is not a man who will raise his voice, or bang with his fist on the table and say, ‘We do it this way.’ No, he was more of a diplomat, not wanting to be a leader, but being a leader. … He wanted to know everything about football, he was interested in every part of the game, and this gave him the nickname, within the team, we called him ‘the Professor,’ because you could ask anything about football, and he would know the answer. | ” |
During 1992–93, his first season at Ajax, he played mostly in the reserves. Supposedly the manager, Louis van Gaal, was already ready to send him back to Finland, but the team physiotherapist advised him to use him to stand in for Dennis Bergkamp, who was injured at the time. Van Gaal liked what he saw, and knowing that Bergkamp about to leave for Internazionale, he announced that during the following season Litmanen would be Bergkamp’s successor, something that people in Litmanen’s native Finland found difficult to believe.[7] However, this turned out to be true, and he inherited from Bergkamp the famous number 10 shirt, which is often given to playmakers. He went on to score 26 goals in the 1993–94 season, becoming the league's top scorer, and leading Ajax to the title. He was also voted the footballer of the year in the Netherlands in 1993.
Litmanen was one of the star players of Louis van Gaal's team that reached the UEFA Champions League final twice in a row. He became the first ever Finnish player to have won the European Cup or the UEFA Champions League when Ajax beat Milan in the 1994-95 final. In 1995-96, Litmanen was the Champions League top scorer with nine goals, including the equaliser in the final against Juventus, which Ajax lost on penalties 4-2. He also won the Intercontinental Cup against Grêmio in 1995, and came third in the voting for the Ballon d'Or (European Footballer of the Year), having finished eighth the previous year.
Litmanen spent seven years in Amsterdam, winning four Dutch championships and three Dutch Cups. He is the club's top scorer in European competition with 26 goals in 54 matches. Litmanen owns the honour of being one of just three players presented in a special video featurette at the Ajax Museum. The other two are Marco van Basten and Johan Cruyff.[8] In his time at Ajax, some fans called him "Merlin" because of the magic he brought to the pitch.
Barcelona
In 1999, Litmanen was re-united with his old boss van Gaal at FC Barcelona. His stint with the club was, however, largely plagued by injuries, and when van Gaal was replaced by Llorenç Serra Ferrer, his chances of playing became even smaller. In the end, Litmanen moved to Liverpool on a free transfer, in January 2001.
Liverpool
Litmanen was hailed as "one of the most exciting signings Liverpool have ever made" by the manager Gérard Houllier upon signing for the club he had supported as a boy.[9] He wanted to wear the number seven shirt as worn by his childhood hero Kenny Dalglish, however this had already been taken by Vladimir Smicer. As shirt numbers 17 and 27 were also in use, he settled for the number 37. But, once again, injuries meant that Litmanen was given little playing time. He did score goals against Tottenham Hotspur and Bayer Leverkusen, and scored a penalty in Liverpool's victory over Roma in the Champions League. He was part of the Liverpool team that won the "cup treble" of the Worthington Cup, FA Cup and UEFA Cup in 2001, even though he missed all three finals because of injury. Litmanen was again given permission to move clubs for free after the 2001–02 season scoring a total of 9 goals in 43 official matches during the two seasons.
Return to Ajax
Litmanen decided to return to Ajax, and was given a hero's welcome with the crowd again singing his name. He was one of the key players as Ajax reached the quarter-finals of the 2002-03 Champions League, but he continued to be plagued by injuries, and much of the following season was once again spent on the sidelines. In the spring of 2004, the club released him from his contract.
FC Lahti and Hansa Rostock
Litmanen's return to Finland, as he joined Lahti, was much hyped, and was hailed as "the return of the king".[10] However, Litmanen moved to German Bundesliga strugglers Hansa Rostock in January 2005 to help save them from relegation. In the end, though, Hansa were relegated, which ended Litmanen's stint at the club.
Malmö FF
Litmanen joined Malmö FF in July 2005 in a bid to help the Swedes qualify for the Champions League. This bid, however, failed, and Litmanen himself was injured during the whole of the autumn, only making a few appearances. He decided to continue his career with Malmö FF in the 2006 season, which saw Litmanen continue to be sidelined with a number of injuries for much of the season. However, the matches he did play showed he remains a brilliant player when healthy. After an operation to repair a damaged ankle during the winter break, Malmö FF and Litmanen decided to extend his contract over the 2007 season. However, an ankle injury in June 2007 forced Litmanen to cancel it.[11]
Fulham
In January 2008, Litmanen received a 10-day trial invitation from Fulham FC, managed by former Finland manager Roy Hodgson, and was signed on 31 January 2008 alongside countryman Toni Kallio. Just weeks after signing with Fulham, Litmanen had to return to his native Finland to rest, after serious heart concerns.
On 31 March 2008, Litmanen made his debut in a Fulham shirt, in a Reserve-team match against Tottenham Reserves. Five minutes before half time, Litmanen scored the opening goal from a penalty kick. He was substituted after 63 minutes, and Fulham Reserves went on to lose the match 1-3. Despite signing for the club in January, Litmanen was released by Fulham in May of the same year without playing a single game in the first team.[12]
Return to Lahti
Local newspapers of Helsinki reported that during his vacation in Rome in June, he was approached by former Greece player, and now General Director of PAOK, Zisis Vryzas for the prospect of joining his club the following season. Litmanen has been training with Lahti for some weeks in Summer 2008.[13]
On 8 August 2008, it was announced that Litmanen would join his former club Lahti of the Finnish Premier Division for the remainder of the 2008 season.[14] He only played 34 minutes in his first match. He scored twice and gave passes to two other goals. He played an important role when FC Lahti for the first time managed to finish third in the league and qualify for European game in the club's history. He signed a new one-year contract with Lahti on 16 April 2009. Litmanen scored his first European goal for Lahti in a 2–0 against Gorica in the second qualifying round of UEFA Europa League, with the final aggregate score being 2–1. This was his 30th European goal in 83 European matches. On 18 September 2010 he scored a bicycle kick goal against AC Oulu in a 1-2 away victory.
On 23 October 2010 he scored his 50th Veikkausliiga goal, but this happened in a 3-2 loss against TPS and it didn't stop FC Lahti from being relegated to Ykkönen.
Return to HJK
On 20 April 2011 Litmanen signed a one-year contract with the reigning Finnish champions, HJK, at the age of 40, making him one of the only players to play at a professional level in four different decades (80's, 90's, 00's and 10's).[15] On 24 September 2011 he scored a spectacular halfvolley in the Finnish Cup final against KuPS as HJK won by 2-1.
International career
Jari Litmanen is Finland's all-time leading scorer. His international career has now lasted over two decades.
Litmanen made his Finland debut on 22 October 1989 against Trinidad and Tobago, and scored his first goal on 16 May 1991 against Malta. The fact that Finland have never qualified for a major tournament has also prevented Litmanen from proving his talent at the highest level in international competition. Litmanen served as Finland's captain from 1996 to 2008, and was arguably their key player for more than a decade, helping the team to many unexpected victories against higher ranked opposition.
Litmanen received his 100th cap on 25 January 2006 against South Korea. He now holds the record for most caps for Finland, and is one of only four Finns to have reached a century of caps, the others being Ari Hjelm, Sami Hyypiä and Jonatan Johansson.
On 19 January 2010 playing for Finland against South Korea in a friendly international in Malaga he had the distinction of playing for Finland In four different decades.
On 17 November 2010, Litmanen became the oldest player ever to score for Finland and also the oldest player overall to score a goal in the qualification competitions for the European championships when he netted a penalty in an 8-0 win over San Marino.[16] Litmanen hasn't yet stated, whether he is going to continue playing or not.
International goals
Finland's score first.
| [show]# | Date | Location | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|
Future career options
The sports news programme Urheiluruutu of the Finnish TV company YLE interviewed in February 2011 two former team mates of Litmanen’s about the possibility of his working for Ajax when he decides to quit his playing career. Former Ajax captain Danny Blind said the following:[17]
| “ | Jari knows the door is always open for him as an assistant coach, as a youth coach, whatever in the club. We love Jari, and we know his qualities as a football player, but also as a coach, I think, so the door is always open for him. | ” |
Michel Kreek of the Ajax Academy was equally positive about this possibility:
| “ | It would be great if Jari would return here in Ajax, we played together, Jari came to Ajax when I played in the first team, and we saw him become a world player, so if that kind of player are willing to come back to Amsterdam, to Ajax, and put some of their experience into Ajax Academy, it’s only a great help for us. | ” |
Personal life
Litmanen was born into a footballing family. His father, Olavi Litmanen, was also a Finnish international and a Reipas player. His mother also played for Reipas at the women's highest level. Litmanen became a father in November 2005, when his Estonian girlfriend Ly Jürgenson gave birth to a son named Caro. The couple's second son, Bruno, was born in September 2007.
On 10 October 2010 Litmanen became the first Finnish team sport player to receive a statue. His statue is located at Kisapuisto (Lahti) where he started his career in the 70's.[18]
Besides playing, Litmanen - using his old contacts in Netherlands - has also managed to send young Finnish players to visit the training camps and play on trial to numerous clubs in Eredivisie. Including Kari Arkivuo, Drilon Shala and Berat Sadik at Go Ahead Eagles and most recently Henri Toivomäki at Ajax.
Career statistics
| Club performance | League | Cup | League Cup | Continental | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Club | League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Finland | League | Finnish Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 1987 | Reipas Lahti | Veikkausliiga | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 10 | 0 | |
| 1988 | 26 | 8 | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | 30 | 8 | |||
| 1989 | 25 | 6 | 4 | 2 | — | — | — | 29 | 8 | |||
| 1990 | 26 | 14 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 29 | 14 | |||
| 1991 | HJK Helsinki | Veikkausliiga | 27 | 16 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 29 | 16 | |
| 1992 | MyPa | Veikkausliiga | 18 | 7 | 6 | 4 | — | — | — | 24 | 11 | |
| Netherlands | League | KNVB Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 1992–93 | Ajax | Eredivisie | 12 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 1 |
| 1993–94 | 30 | 26 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 38 | 34 | ||
| 1994–95 | 27 | 17 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 6 | 42 | 27 | ||
| 1995–96 | 26 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 9 | 38 | 23 | ||
| 1996–97 | 16 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 24 | 8 | ||
| 1997–98 | 25 | 16 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 34 | 22 | ||
| 1998–99 | 23 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 32 | 13 | ||
| Spain | League | Copa del Rey | Copa de la Liga | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 1999–00 | Barcelona | La Liga | 21 | 3 | 3 | 1 | — | 5 | 0 | 29 | 4 | |
| 2000–01 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| England | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2000-01 | Liverpool | Premier League | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 2 |
| 2001–02 | 21 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 3 | 32 | 7 | ||
| Netherlands | League | KNVB Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2002–03 | Ajax | Eredivisie | 14 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 22 | 7 |
| 2003–04 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 0 | ||
| Finland | League | Finnish Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2004 | Lahti | Veikkausliiga | 11 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 13 | 3 |
| Germany | League | DFB-Pokal | Premiere Ligapokal | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2004–05 | Hansa Rostock | Bundesliga | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 1 |
| Sweden | League | Svenska Cupen | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2005 | Malmö FF | Allsvenskan | 2 | 1 | — | 2 | 0 | 4* | 1* | |||
| 2006 | 8 | 2 | — | — | — | 8* | 2* | |||||
| 2007 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 0* | 0* | |||||
| England | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2007–08 | Fulham | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 |
| Finland | League | Finnish Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2008 | Lahti | Veikkausliiga | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 6 | 3 |
| 2009 | 13 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 24 | 4 | ||
| 2010 | 21 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 23 | 5 | ||
| 2011 | HJK Helsinki | 12 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 16 | 2 | |
| Total | Finland | 194 | 65 | 22 | 7 | 7 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 233 | 74 | |
| Netherlands | 179 | 96 | 16 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 54 | 26 | 253 | 135 | ||
| Spain | 21 | 3 | 3 | 1 | — | 5 | 0 | 29 | 4 | |||
| England | 26 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 11 | 3 | 43 | 9 | ||
| Germany | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 14 | 1 | ||
| Sweden | 10 | 3 | — | 2 | 0 | 12* | 3* | |||||
| Finnish national team | 137 | 32 | — | — | — | 137 | 32 | |||||
| Career total | 580 | 205 | 45* | 19* | 14 | 4 | 82 | 30 | 721* | 258* | ||
- Asterisk (*) indicates the matches played and the number of goals at least scored, further research may produce more matches and goals.
- Finnish League Cup held for the first time only in 1994. In Sweden and in Spain, there are no league cup.
- The matches listed as the Dutch league cup are actually matches played in the Dutch Super Cup (season 1992–1993 to 1995–1996), continued as the Johan Cruijff Schaal (from season 1996–1997 on), traditionally played before the start of the season between the Dutch national champions and the KNVB Cup winners.
Honours
Reached 100 goals for AFC Ajax (total 135 goals in 253 matches)
Club titles
- UEFA Champions League: 1994–95
- European Super Cup: 1995
- Intercontinental Cup: 1995
- Dutch championship: 1993–94, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1997–98, 2003–04
- KNVB Cup: 1992–93, 1997–98, 1998–99
- Johan Cruijff Schaal: 1993, 1994, 1995
- UEFA Cup: 2000–01
- European Super Cup: 2001
- FA Cup: 2000–01
- Football League Cup: 2000–01
- FA Community Shield: 2001
Personal awards and achievements
- Finnish Footballer of the Year: 1990, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000
- Finnish Veikkausliiga Player of the Year: 1990
- Finnish Sports Personality of the Year: 1995
- Dutch Footballer of the Year: 1993
- European Footballer of the Year, 8th place: 1994
- European Footballer of the Year, 3rd place: 1995
- Dutch league top scorer: 1993–94
- UEFA Champions League top scorer: 1995–96
- All-time cap leader of the Finnish national team
- All-time top scorer of the Finnish national team
- All-time European top scorer of AFC Ajax 26 goals
References
- ^ news.bbc.co.uk
- ^ uefa.com
- ^ ESPNsoccernet - England - Your Verdict: 100 greatest ever footballers
- ^ guardian.co.uk
- ^ Helsingin Sanomat, May 2010, p. B 13.
- ^ "Jari Litmanen" (in Dutch). Ajax. Retrieved 2009-03-05.
- ^ a b David Endt in an interview to YLE TV2, 28 September 2010, during a Champions League match half time.
- ^ soccernet.espn.go.com
- ^ news.bbc.co.uk
- ^ hs.fi
- ^ [1]
- ^ "Bocanegra heads Fulham clear-out". BBC. 2006-05-23. Retrieved 2008-05-23.
- ^ Jari Litmanen – Eine unvollendete Karriere
- ^ palloliitto.fi
- ^ Litmanen joins HJK HJK.fi (Finnish)
- ^ palloliitto.fi
- ^ YLE Urheiluruutu, 3 March 2011.
- ^ Litmasen patsas julkistettiin - Litmanen's statue was revealed (Finnish)
External links
sunnuntai 21. elokuuta 2011
tiistai 20. heinäkuuta 2010
"THE FLYING FINN"and WORLD STAR: PAAVO NURMI from FINLAND(SUOMI-FINLAND)
Paavo Nurmi
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
 Nurmi at the 1920 Summer Olympics. | ||
| Men's athletics | ||
Competitor for  Finland | ||
| Olympic Games | ||
| Gold | 1920 Antwerp | 10000 m |
| Gold | 1920 Antwerp | Individual cross country |
| Gold | 1920 Antwerp | Cross country team |
| Gold | 1924 Paris | 1500 m |
| Gold | 1924 Paris | 5000 m |
| Gold | 1924 Paris | Individual cross country |
| Gold | 1924 Paris | 5000 m cross country team |
| Gold | 1924 Paris | 3000 m team |
| Gold | 1928 Amsterdam | 10000 m |
| Silver | 1920 Antwerp | 5000 m |
| Silver | 1928 Amsterdam | 5000 m |
| Silver | 1928 Amsterdam | 3000 m steeplechase |
Paavo Johannes Nurmi (
Nurmi won a total of nine gold and three silver medals in the 12 events in which he competed at the Olympic Games from 1920 to 1928. In 1932, Nurmi was unable to compete at the Olympics, as he had received money for his running and was thus considered a professional.
Contents[hide] |
[edit] Career
[edit] Olympic career
Nurmi debuted at the 1920 Summer Olympics by competing in four events. He won three gold medals: the 10,000 m, the cross country event and the cross country team event, and finished second in the 5000 m.
In 1924, he won five gold medals in five events, including the 1500 m, 5000 m (with only 26 minutes between the final races; as a try out he had broken the world record in both of these events earlier the same year, the 3000 m team race, and again both cross country events. It was the last time these cross country events were held, as the great heat caused more than half of the competitors to abandon the race, and many more had to be taken to hospital. Finnish officials, fearing for his health, refused to enter Nurmi in the 10,000 m event. Thus, he was unable to defend his title. An angry Nurmi protested after returning to Finland by setting a 10,000 m world record that would last for almost 13 years.
Nurmi ended his Olympic career at the 1928 Summer Olympics, winning the 10,000 m and two silver medals (5000 m and 3000 m steeplechase).
Nurmi has won the most Olympic medals in Track & Field, 12 total. He ties Larissa Latynina, Mark Spitz, and Carl Lewis[1] with nine Olympic gold medals, second only to Michael Phelps with fourteen.[2] Due to this fact, he is often considered the greatest Track & Field athlete of all time.
During his competitive running career, which lasted from about 1919 to 1934, Nurmi earned a reputation for speaking very little off the track. An illustration of this was his two-word reply to a congratulatory speech during his 1925 tour of the United States: "Thank you!". In contrast to another famous early 20th-century Finnish Olympic running champion, Hannes Kolehmainen, he also rarely smiled in public. No wonder he was nicknamed "A Great Silent One" (Suuri vaikenija) by some contemporary Finns (see, for example, Antero Raevuori, "Paavo Nurmi: The King of Runners" / Paavo Nurmi: Juoksijoiden kuningas, published in Finland in the late 1980s).
Nurmi was a vegetarian from the age of 12.[3]
[edit] Later life
Nurmi continued to run after the Olympics in Amsterdam with every intent to compete in the 10,000 m and marathon events at the 1932 Summer Olympics, but he was branded a professional and barred from running in Los Angeles. The main conductors of the ban were the Swedish officials, especially Sigfrid Edström, the president of the IAAF and vice-president of the IOC. Edström claimed that Nurmi had received too much money for his travel expenses to a meet in Germany. This was seen as jealousy by many in Finland and in part led to Finland refusing to participate in the traditional Finland-Sweden international athletics event until 1939 (see Raevuori, "Paavo Nurmi").
However, Nurmi did travel to Los Angeles and kept training at the Olympic Village. Despite pleas from all the entrants of the marathon, Nurmi was not allowed to compete at the Games. Although he had suffered from injuries, he claimed he would have won the marathon by five minutes after the event was over. He had set his heart on ending his career with a marathon gold medal, as his fellow countryman Hannes Kolehmainen had done shortly after the First World War (see Raevuori, "Paavo Nurmi").
A Finnish national hero, Paavo Nurmi was the lighter of the Olympic Flame at the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki. In retirement he ran a haberdashery store in Helsinki, and owned a housing construction company which built several houses and apartment buildings around Helsinki (see Raevuori, "Paavo Nurmi").
Nurmi had a brief marriage with Sylvi Nurmi, from 1932 to 1935. Their son Matti was a Finnish national-level middle-distance runner in the 1950s.
A widely publicized practical joke by students at the Helsinki University of Technology took place in 1961, when a team of students smuggled a statue of Nurmi onto the 300-year-old wreck of the Swedish Regalskeppet Vasa just days before its lifting from the bottom of the sea[4]
In his final years, starting around 1967, when he allowed the Finnish President Urho Kekkonen (a personal and sports friend)to interview him for his 70th birthday over the Finnish Public Radio YLE, Nurmi gave more newspaper and magazine interviews. Suffering from health problems especially since the late 1960s, with at least one heart attack, a stroke and failing eyesight, he at times spoke bitterly about sports, calling it a waste of time compared to science and art (see Raevuori, "Paavo Nurmi"). Nurmi died in 1973 in Helsinki and was given a state funeral.
[edit] References
- ^ http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080812/ts_nm/olympics_dc_136
- ^ Wallechinsky, David; Jaime Loucky (2008). The Complete Book of the Olympics: 2008 Edition. Aurum Press. pp. 1178. ISBN 978-1-84513-330-6.
- ^ Seiro, Arno; Jari Väliverronen (2007-06-22). "HS etsii Suomen merkittävintä urheilusaavutusta" (in Finnish). Helsingin Sanomat. http://www.hs.fi/urheilu/artikkeli/HS+etsii+Suomen+merkitt%C3%A4vint%C3%A4+urheilusaavutusta/1135228213483. Retrieved 2008-05-14.
- ^ Ilta-Sanomat 5 July 1961 "Vasan veijarit", scan available at archive.org dump of ttky.fi.
[edit] External links
 | Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Paavo Nurmi |
| Records | ||
|---|---|---|
Preceded by John Zander | Men's 1,500 m World Record Holder 19 June 1924 – 11 September 1926 | Succeeded by Otto Peltzer |
Preceded by Norman Taber | Men's Mile World Record Holder 23 August 1923 – 4 October 1931 | Succeeded by Jules Ladoumègue |
| Preceded by John Zander | Men's 3,000 m World Record Holder 27 August 1922 – 7 June 1925 | Succeeded by Edvin Wide |
| Preceded by Edvin Wide | Men's 3,000 m World Record Holder 24 May 1926 – 19 June 1932 | Succeeded by Janusz Kusociński |
| Preceded by Jean Bouin | Men's 10,000 m World Record Holder 22 June 1921 – 25 May 1924 | Succeeded by Ville Ritola |
| Preceded by Ville Ritola | Men's 10,000 m World Record Holder 31 August 1924 – 18 July 1937 | Succeeded by Ilmari Salminen |
| Preceded by John Zander | European Record Holder Men's 1500m 19 June 1924 - 10 September 1926 | Succeeded by Otto Peltzer |
| Olympic Games | ||
| Preceded by John Mark | Final Summer Olympic Torchbearer with Hannes Kolehmainen Helsinki 1952 | Succeeded by Ron Clarke & Hans Wikne |
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