Petteri Kilpinen was elected on Saturday as the new chairman of the Finnish Olympic Committee by a clear landslide. He defeated his opponent Tapio Korjusen overwhelmingly by 93–38.
On the other hand, the board of the Olympic Committee was elected for the next four-year term Laura Lepistö, Henrik Dettmann, Erkka Westerlund, Esa-Pekka Mattila, Hanna-Mari Hall, Henrika Backlund, Martti Uusitalo mixed Katarina Naumanen. In addition to them, the board includes a Finnish member of the IOC Sari Essayah and chairman of the IOC Athletes’ Commission Emma Terho.
The Olympic Committee has been the target of fierce raids after the Paris Olympics, which ended in disappointment for Finns. For the first time in its history, Finland was left without a Summer Olympic medal, which caused concern and anger in many people.
Toni Roponen works in the Olympic Committee as top sports representative for snow sports. Roponen is remembered in cross-country skiing by his wife Riitta-Liisa Roposen and world champion Matti Heikkinen as a coach. In addition, he has been the head coach of the Finnish national biathlon team.
He is satisfied with the composition of the new board.
– There are really tough experts in elite sports and experts in sports federations. I am confident that the Olympic Committee has a good board that will move the entire Finnish elite sport forward.
So is this a change for the better?
– We always believe that there is a change for the better. We operational people work in the field and we believe that the government will support our work with a strategic direction, Roponen answers.
“A more victorious nation”
Roponen has been in the wash for almost two years. During the period in question, Matti Heikkinen, head of the elite sports unit, and head of sports competition programs Leena Paavolainen has been shown the door.
Jan Vapaavuori on the other hand, announced at the beginning of autumn that he would not seek another term as chairman of the Olympic Committee. There has been no success and there has been severe turbulence around the Olympic Committee.
Roponen is satisfied that top sports cause emotions in Finland.
– There has been a lot of turbulence in every direction. It has been interesting to see how much interest it arouses everywhere.
The elite sports unit and its existence have attracted criticism. Roponen is constantly in contact with athletes and coaches. He tries to help sports federations succeed.
– I think that through enhancement support, we are very well able to direct resources to top athletes and their coaches. It’s always a process how well they and top athletes succeed.
So Finland was left without an Olympic medal in Paris. From the previous Winter Games, Finland received no less than eight medals, six of which came from cross-country skiing and two from ice hockey.
– Of course we have to do things better so that we can also do well in the Summer Olympics. We need to find better resources for athletes and develop coaching skills.
– We need to think better about how we can be a more winning nation. That requires everyone’s common desire and will, Roponen states.
Get more out of elite athletes
There has also been criticism of whether the support euros go to the right addresses, i.e. athletes and coaches. In Roponen’s opinion, it has been “very” successful and it has also been aimed at different sports.
In his opinion, the essential question is whether the resources can be utilized as well as possible. According to Roposen, the key is whether the training complies with international requirements.
Roponen says that in the end, the sports federations are responsible for whether the available resources and athletes get the most out of their potential. At the Olympics in Finland, there were only a few athletes who could be expected to win a medal.
About them Martti Puumalainen and Wilma Murron the outlook had weakened due to various challenges since 2023. At that time, both were tops in their respective fields.
In the Olympics, the success rate of top athletes was too low.
– We have to ensure the best possible preparation of top athletes for prestigious competitions. We have to turn all the stones so that we succeed at the right moment.
Roponen talks about prioritization.
– In the new strategy, coaching expertise has been clearly brought to the center. Top athletes and their processes also need to be clearly better supported so that success is possible at the next Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
More versatile in Milan?
At the moment, the eye is on the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics. It is not a given that Finland will get medals there.
In cross-country skiing in Beijing, the program included favorable trips for Finnish athletes, which explained a lot of the sport’s big pot of six medals.
In Roponen’s opinion, with the next Olympics in mind, it looks good now in many sports. In addition to cross-country skiing, the top sport, freeski also has a promising situation. There have been flashes of light in alpine skiing for a long time by Eduard Hallberg and Elian Lehton with.
Tanja Poutiainen was responsible for the alpine medal at the 2006 Turin Games.
– There have been successes in quite a few sports right from the beginning of the season. I believe that compared to the previous games, we have a chance to succeed in the upcoming Olympics in more different snow sports, Roponen sees.