Tuomas Törrönen assesses how the situation of the Finnish para-athletics team currently looks in terms of the Paris Paralympics.
12:36•Updated 12:46
The World Para Athletics Championships in Kobe, Japan ended on Saturday. Finland’s team of six athletes won Leo-Pekka Tähten leading a total of four medals. Sports expert Tuomas Törrönen was satisfied with the performance of the Finnish team.
– The medal balance is very good for such a small team.
Tähti won the World Championship gold in 100 meters in a superior style. The competition was of a tough level, even though the top bowlers were missing the number one name of the moment, the 21-year-old Athiwat Paeng-Nuean. In January, a young Thai set a 100-meter world record.
– The star is once again in the shape of his life. The time 13.78 is a really hard result. It would have been great if Athiwat were also the competitions in Kobe, Törrönen enthuses.
Törrönen believes that Tähti will not easily bend to Athiwati.
– Tähti is an experienced athlete and he has been annoyed before. There will be a hard fight for victory. I’m looking forward to meeting the duo.
Kööpikä, Mann and Mattila’s situation looks good
The shot putter selected for the Paralympics Teijo Köpikkä did well in the World Championships considering the situation. He pushed the World Championship bronze in the F57 series.
He had surgery on his elbow at the end of last year.
– The performance was very good considering the time. He’s by no means ready yet, but he’s certainly improving heading into Paris. The top is tough, but he is in the medal hunt, says Törrönen.
About track rollers By Henry Mann and Esa-Pekka Mattila there is no place for the Paris Games yet.
Competing in the T34 class, Manni took the WC bronze in 100 and 400 meters. In his side event at 800 meters, he was a fantastic fourth.
– Manni showed that he is in very good shape already in the spring season. Last year, the World Championships did not go as expected, but now he gave really good performances considering the national places.
The same situation applies to Esa-Pekka Mattila. Mattila was fifth in the T54 class 100 meter final.
– A really good improvement compared to last year. Although the final was moved to Friday morning due to the protest, he coped excellently. He is also a strong candidate for land.
About other Finnish athletes Petteri Peitso was sixth at the World Championships in his main sport, T11 class discus throw. Competing in the T48 class Vilma Berg was, on the other hand, sixth in his heat in the 400-meter race. In his main event, Berg finished last in the final.
Piispanen and Kotaja
Among the track and field athletes who claimed a place at the Paris Paralympics, the windsurfers Toni Piispanen and Amanda Kotaja, javelin thrower Marjaana Heikkinen and Iida Lounela were not involved in the World Cup.
Competing in the T51 class, Piispanen was originally named to the World Cup team, but his femur was broken as a result of an injury in April.
– The thigh has been patched up so much that the bone will definitely last. Of course, the wound has to heal and the swelling has to go down for him to fit in the wheelchair. There is still plenty of time to recover for the Paris Games, Törrönen says.
Instead, Kotaja announced well in advance that he is not going to the World Championships. He has trained in an international group with his Dutch coach Arko Mulini under. Kotaja improved his Finnish record in the T54 class 400 meters in the United Arab Emirates in February.
According to Törrönen, Kotaja will next compete in the Swiss Open at the beginning of June.
– I would believe that he is in good shape and has had no health concerns.
Additional places will be distributed during the summer
At the end of last year, the Finnish Paralympic Committee nominated six general athletes for the Paris Games, but some places have yet to be allocated.
At the World Championships in Japan, direct country spots were distributed only to the first two.
So there are no ranking statistics or result limits in para sports. Additional country places are allocated through HPS results (High Performance Standards), which can be done until June 16. The locations will be published at the end of June. In addition, there are a small number of “wild cards” in the distribution, the final number of which is affected by the lands distributed through the HPS results.
– I think that there will not be very many additional places for Finland. The Finnish team will be small, but of high quality. Every athlete will fight for the top spots.