In the middle of the World Hockey Championships, I was reminded of the most important things, writes Jussi Paasi.
The square face is the square face. He is always recognized. Then move anywhere.
It depends on both the square face and his identifier whether the situation is pleasing to just one or both.
On Tuesday evening this week in Tampere, the moment of identification was positive for everyone. Familiar from TV, an identifier – and at the same time the whole party I happened to belong to.
The events take place in a nutrition store located in the center of Tampere.
Yes. Journalists may still go for a few malt drinks at the World Cup after work, although spending has calmed down significantly compared to decades ago. Or at least that’s what my older colleagues have said. The advent of the internet reportedly limited the fun as work increased and schedules tightened.
The clock approached midnight. The Lions had won an hour and a half earlier in the final game of the Czech Preliminaries. The puck was in a festive mood.
We sat in the evening with a group of four when a polite inquiry was heard from the table next door. Even exceptionally polite, as most people are in a state where behaviors may be forgotten.
– Excuse me, can you be a sports reporter?
The question, of course, was aimed at the square face.
He replied in the affirmative, but immediately turned his attention to the other reporters at the table. It was understandable, because the TV journalist who spent his free time in Tampere had already been filmed on the same day for a huge media cube in the World Cup arena. There she was expected to showcase her dance skills. The hips moved forcibly.
The scout at the next table did not approach the grid in the hope of a common picture. He had something much more important in his mind.
The book you wanted to give.
The book dealt with hockey, of course, we were in the hockey capital of Finland. And when the bread type of TV face is basketball, I got the honor of receiving that opus.
When the book was handed to me, the accompaniment became a startlingly solid knowledge of the history of hockey. It turned out that the handler was one of the translators of the book.
I first thought that cunning book marketing is now being practiced here. My cynical attitude quickly receded when I realized what kind of book it was.
Lost years. The tragedy of Czechoslovak hockey.
The book tells the story of sports heroes convicted of espionage and treason with long sentences. Czechoslovak hockey stars were to set out to compete for the third world championship, but were sent to infamous prisons and forced labor camps.
On October 7, 1950, a total of 11 Czechoslovak players were sentenced to absolute prison. The combined length of the sentences was 77 years and eight months.
Nonsense, terrible, disgusting, brutal, I repeated in my mind as I was browsing the book.
One of the main characters in the book has also become known in Finland Gustav Bubnik. Bubnik served as the head coach of the Finnish national hockey team from 1966-1969.
Stories, pictures, and direct questions from the book stopped.
What really controls human destinies? Who decides the stages of the story of our lives and how?
As a Finn, born in the 1970s, it is completely impossible to even imagine such a thing in one’s own country. That 11 players from the Lions team would be imprisoned. Innocent.
At the same time, I wonder how incredibly great it is that in the 2020s, the Czech Republic and Finland will meet in a hockey arena where everyone will have fun. And nanoseconds later, I remembered that war was going on in Europe.
I had been working at the World Cup in Tampere for thirteen days. The tournament is ideal in many ways, albeit a pretty tough gig at the same time. Let’s focus on one species, one place. The world outside the races will disappear or at least blur for almost three weeks. It feels especially good at a time when watching the news, the mouthpieces don’t turn up.
In the midst of these sweet, riotous and well-organized World Cups in every way, I was reminded of the most important things. About freedom, peace, justice. For everything that was deprived of the heroes of Czechoslovakia.
I recommend learning about the history of hockey in Czechoslovakia. Oddly enough, it gives us a perspective on what we are enjoying in Tampere right now.
It was worth going for a couple of sports drinks after a long day at work.