Sport met Kalervo Kummola before the Lions match against Britain. He told me why he has been on the sidelines of the race so far.
Joska Saarinen,
Jussi Paasi
In the first days of the World Hockey Championships, the hall wondered where Kalervo Kummola is. The Tampere resident was not seen as a long-distance puck influencer in the new Arena, for which he has worked for decades.
On Friday, a familiar figure walked the aisles of the Tampere arena. He had time for an interview with Sport, although almost every respondent in the Arena wanted to greet Kummola.
Sports met Kalervo Kummola just before the Lions match against Britain. He told me why he has been on the sidelines of the race so far.
– Kale covered the races for a few days at home, when a slight Korona hit before the races, Kummola said.
A well-to-do, good-natured puck legend arrived in the Tampere arena.
– I have watched games more now than usual, Kummola laughed.
Kummola said he was pleased when people praised Tampere’s new arena.
– Of course, I expected these halls to be completed. This has been a long, five-year process. The success of the Finnish team is now expected. We have never even won a medal in a home race.
Kummola is the former vice-president of the International Hockey Federation. Although Kummola is no longer in a position of trust at the top of international hockey, he still has relationships with puck makers.
It is possible that the World Hockey Championships will be played in Finland next year as well. Tampere and the Latvian capital Riga jointly applied for the 2023 World Cup, which was taken from Russia due to the war.
Budapest and Ljubljana are also applying for the competition.
– They do not really comply with the IIHF regulations, but it is also said that the same country should not be held twice in a row. By a week or so on Saturday, we will be wiser. At least we will work hard for Tampere and Riga to organize the Games, Kummola said.
According to Kummola, the importance of the World Hockey Championships for the city of Tampere is enormous.
– Tampere has never received so much attention. Not even from the EU Conference of Presidents.