Alexander Stubb performed at the Kuusamo World Cup in the uniform of the Ski Association. The major sponsor of the national ski team wants its logo to be seen only on the athletes’ uniforms. Ristomatti Hakola was revealed to be a devil.
The coalition’s presidential candidate by Alexander Stubb appearance at the skiing world cup in Kuusamo last weekend has aroused astonishment. Stubb appeared in his Instagram photos several times in the sponsor outfit of the national skiing team, which is considered a very special signal from a sports organization and a candidate just before the presidential election.
The Ski Federation is a non-political non-governmental organization, which received 1.03 million euros of money collected from taxpayers from the Ministry of Education and Culture in the most recent state aid. The association cannot have its “own” presidential candidate, even if one is one of its star skiers Cross mat Hakola belongs to Stubb’s support group.
The sponsor outfit of the national ski team is not sold anywhere to outsiders, and it is usually only available for athletes, coaching and maintenance.
It is a particularly unfortunate thing for Ilta-Sanom, one of the major partners of the national skiing team. In the Instagram photos, Stubb’s outfit clearly shows the magazine’s logo, which has been frowned upon in the politically uncommitted media company.
“Not suitable”
– Ilta-Sanomat did not know about this. The procedure is not suitable from our point of view, because the logo belongs only to the outfits of the sponsors, i.e. above all the athletes. We are in no way sponsoring Stubb’s or any other candidate’s campaign, commented Ilta-Sanomie’s editor-in-chief Johanna Lahti.
Long-term major partner of skiers, chairman of the board and major owner of the energy company St1 Mika Anttonen swore that St1 as a company has never been politically committed.
– We have 600,000 customers every day, i.e. the whole spectrum of society.
Urheilu could not reach the person responsible for distributing clothes at the Ski Federation Petteri from Vuori to tell how and with what consideration the sponsor’s outfit was given to Stubb, let alone whether it remained his.
“Cold skis on eggshells”
Supporter Hakola told Urheilu that he got Stubbs an outfit. Hakola also went skiing with Stubb in Kuusamo. Profiled as a friend of many top athletes on Instagram, Stubb also posed for e.g. a three-time Olympic champion Iivo Niskanen with.
– I got (the apartment) and I promise to keep getting it for every candidate who comes skiing, Hakola stated.
– It would have been too cold to ski in Munas. It’s okay to ask From Remi (Lindholm), Hakola continued.
Hakola does not have an employment relationship with the Skiing Federation, but the joint life of the federation and the athletes is regulated by the athlete agreement. It does not prohibit political activities from athletes.
Since the beginning of the week, the matter has been realized by the Ski Federation as a very embarrassing and potentially dissatisfying bug in the partners.
– The Ski Federation is, of course, a politically neutral non-governmental organization in all elections, the president of the federation Markku Haapasalmi messaged.
The chairman also said that later on Wednesday, the union plans to provide detailed information on how things progressed in Kuusamo.
Hakola is not the only famous person from the sports world who is among Stubb’s forces. The head coach of the A national ice hockey team also stands there in significant positions Jukka Jalonen and Vice President of the Olympic Committee Susanna Rahkamo.