Jan Zelezny summed up Oliver Helander’s World Cup final perfectly – Finland’s only realistic hope for a medal was in Oregon on a study trip

If the continental plates of athletics do not move significantly on the last day of the competition, the Finnish team will return home from the World Championships for the third time in a row without a medal. So far, the best of the Finnish team have been the javelin Lassi Etelätalo and Wilma Murtoboth sixths.

The Finnish national team’s best competition ranking came from a place completely different from the javelin throw in 2005. At the home games in Helsinki, the long jumper Tommi Evilä achieved World Championship bronze as the team’s best non-spearman.

On Sunday Aku Bearden and Aleksi Ojala compete in a stripped-down walk shortened from 50 kilometers to 35, making its debut in Oregon at the rank race level. If one of the walkers arrives at the finish line in a better position than Etelätalo and Murto, the final result will be excellent compared to the preliminary settings.

The third Finn on the final day, the quick-fire Reetta Hurskeen surviving to the semi-finals is the maximum performance for his level. For Hurske, the focus of interest is whether he can improve on his season best. The minimum goal has already been met.

It also met its minimum goal Oliver Helanderthe only realistic medal candidate of the Finnish team.

The sad balance of three qualifiers, three eliminations was erased in history at Oregon time on Thursday, when Helander advanced to the finals of the prestigious competition for the first time. Helander, who rarely competed due to his history of injuries, could be compared to a field trip.

In the fourth round, the stick slipped from Helander’s hand and only flew a meager twenty meters. Instead, with his best throw in the third round, the javelin landed almost like a dart to 82.24.

Watch Helander’s best throw below.

A lot boils down to power in Helander. In the final, nothing changed compared to the previous competitions of the season. In terms of power, the blocks were in place in one throw in the World Cup final, and if the javelin had started in the right position in that one throw, the ingredients would have been in a medal-level cap. On Sunday, however, the equation was not a winning one.

The inexperience shined far.

– If he stays healthy for a year, he will throw more than 90 meters. Helander is very talented. These World Cups were an important lesson for him. He can challenge Jakub already at the European Championships.

The words belong to the spear legend To Jan Zeleznywhich was protected by Jakub Vadlejch took the WC bronze with a score of 88.09. Helander has thrown further than this only once in his career, in June at the Paavo Nurme Games (89.83), where he washed away the trio of medals at the Hayward Field award ceremony.

Then we’ll get to the point. After the June race, Helander, 25, has competed only once, in Stockholm’s Diamond League. There, the result was 85.46, which took Fifth place – when the three medalists threw the same readings as in the World Cup finals seen now.

A managerial legend Jukka Härkönen has marinated athletes in his stable who have won two hundred prestigious medals. A Finnish athletics enthusiast can take a lesson from Härkönen’s guideline: in prestigious competitions, the competition is primarily at the basic level, from which a medal is won on a good day.

In Helander’s case, the average is calculated from the results of PNG and Stockholm Diamond League. In this case, the average becomes 87.65. It wouldn’t have been enough for a medal in the World Cup finals, even though the best throw left open where the maximum result could have been.

After moving under Pitkämäki last fall, Helander has gotten rid of its reputation, where on a bad day the spear flies to numbers that start at a standstill at best. On Saturday at Hayward Field, his best shot – even if it was a technically weak throw – carried him to the ranking that entitled him to points in the World Cup finals.

It is a significant step forward in less than a year. After the World Cup final, nothing has changed: Helander is a potential 90-meter thrower when he is on the line.

The reason why there was no medal-entitlement result on Saturday can be found in the routines.

Helander appeared for the fourth time in the prestigious competition, which may sound like a lot. However, that is not what it is.

Helander, who switched from handball to javelin throw in 2016, is still raw in his current sport, although individual top results have been attracting attention since 2018. At that time, the record of 88.02, which has been valid until this year, was created.

After this, IF Raseborg was brought up and today the super talent representing Oulu Pyrintö has been targeted with medal expectations, above all for the reason that Finnish athletics has not had a better trump card than Helander when it comes to performing at the maximum level. Let’s emphasize again: the maximum level is a prerequisite, but not a guarantee for any kingdom’s success in value competitions.

Only this year has a side of Helander been seen that gives even thin seams to realistic medal expectations. To strengthen them, Helander only needs frequent competitions, not two-week throwing breaks after successes.

Finland’s 36-member team has competed in the World Championships in Oregon with a plus sign compared to its starting level. Most of them met their minimum goals, so did Helander, clearing his qualifying spot.

However, Zelezny was absolutely right in his assessment: as long as he stays healthy, Helander will make even bigger headlines. Possibly already in a month.