Floorball Women’s World Championships from Singapore on channels 2-10 December 2023.
– Is there a doctor here?
A worried cry breaks the silence in Kupitta’s ballroom. Defender of the national floorball team Henrika Maikola has fallen in the third period of the match against the Czech Republic near the sideline and was left lying on the ground in pain.
The audience is silent as if certain that something serious has happened.
There is no doctor in the hall, but there is one almost ready. Johanna Homi is by Maikola’s side when she is injured, and she immediately sees that help is needed now.
Maikola’s finger has been painfully dislocated. Heart rate and adrenaline are high during the game, but now suddenly Hom, 28, has to switch roles from player to doctor in an instant.
Treating a dislocated finger is a completely new procedure for Hom, let alone that he would have done it in front of hundreds of spectators. However, he remains calm, and the first aid patrol who happens to be in the hall also comes to his aid.
– I had to take a breath a couple of times and think about what to do here. Then we acted. The finger was put in place and everything was fine, Homi times.
After a long medical break, the game continues with Finland leading 5–2, but the coaching team doesn’t know how to read the situation and puts Hom back on the court for the last ten minutes. At the last second, the Tampere Classic striker flicks the ball into the still empty Czech goal, and Finland wins 6–3.
However, Hom’s head is elsewhere, and the feeling has surfaced.
– Changing the role from doctor back to player was not that simple. After the game, I told the coaches that I shouldn’t have gone to play anymore.
The surprising situation that occurred at the October EFT tournament in Turku could have frozen many, but not Hom. Coaches and teammates who know him emphasize that whatever Homi does, he wants to do things properly.
He is determined, pedantic, analytical and demanding, even to the extent that the coaches have not always had the opportunity to give a direct answer to the player’s questions.
When the coaches talk, Homi listens carefully. He really wants to know why things are done.
– Over the years, I have gained self-confidence to also question things. I’ve seen many different coaches, and I want to know their backgrounds behind the ideas.
– I always go ahead of the team, and if I feel that I need to wake up the coaching, I have been waking up.
The level of demand is still high, but Homi has learned to take things more relaxed and the background has always been a strong desire to succeed. The years have polished away the sharpest corners, and life experience was accumulated, for example, in the Swedish Superliga in Sirius’ shirt in the 2020–2021 season.
Now Homi feels that he enjoys playing sports more.
– Could it be that when he went for a spin in Sweden and had to become more independent, he has been able to take things more relaxed since then.
– When there aren’t that many playing years anymore, instead of grinding it out, you want to go with a slightly more relaxed mind.
Calendar in heavy use
Homi, originally from Nokia, has played in the Finnish and Swedish leagues for more than 10 years, and at the age of 28, he is one of the team’s experienced players, both in the national team and in the club team.
Homi studied biology for a couple of years, but the career of a teacher didn’t feel right. In the end, through folk college, he ended up applying to Tampere medical school. On the second time, it went wrong.
Homi will graduate next spring, and including the gap year spent in Sweden, the 6.5-year job of combining top sports with demanding studies has required character. He has also demanded a lot from himself, because during his busy years of study he has played himself twice in the World Cup team.
The current year culminates in the World Championships in Singapore at the beginning of December, and the tournament will be the last of Hom’s National Team career. The fact that he was in contact with the faculty about the Games already a year and a half ago shows the importance of planning.
The calendar has been in active use.
– The teaching staff has been wonderful, and they have helped organize substitute assignments. Even in the team, my situation has always been taken into account, and I have been very open if there have been more stressful phases.
Homi has received help and support especially from his spouse, who has been making it possible to run a busy everyday life. Tomorrow there are 24 hours in a day, and there simply isn’t enough time for everything.
– This fall, I’ve noticed that I haven’t seen friends outside of floorball almost at all. I’ve been in embarrassingly little contact, but they know that when the games are over, black is heard more again.
Homi gives a tip to all those struggling with the same issues, that you must remember to mark the rest in the calendar. Teammates talk a lot about combining elite floorball and other life.
– It’s difficult, but the earlier you are clear about your schedules, the more rhythmic your everyday life will be. The challenge is where that rest time is. Do you have to do school work when you should be resting and on the other hand you should also have time to see family and friends.
Many go to work in addition to playing and studying, because floorball does not provide a living in Finland. Homi is a typical female soccer player in the sense that she is approaching her thirties, school is over and work and family life beckon.
In many sports, careers end when no money is paid for playing and other things become even more important. Homi is a little surprised when asked if he would only focus on indoor basketball if becoming a professional was an option.
– I need a counterweight. I enjoy the other career that I have besides floorball and that is the thing that supports this other one. It would be really hard if you only had to focus on floorball.
The dream of World Cup gold carries on
Finland’s floorball women last celebrated the World Championship gold in 2001, when Homi was six years old. Finland has been close, because in 2015 and 2017 Sweden was better in the final penalty shootout. Last in Uppsala 2021 Emelie Wibron decided the fate of the gold for the blue and yellow in overtime.
Homi participated in Uppsala and in the bronze tournament in Neuchatel 2019, and the national team has always been a matter of great honor. In addition to the World Championship bronze and silver, he has medals of the same color from the Finnish league, and the chances of winning are dwindling.
The dream of World Cup gold has helped me cope with everyday life.
– You don’t get such feelings anywhere else than what the national team gives. They are such great trips and I cherish those memories. We have fun together, but whenever we do things, we do it seriously.
Homi has moved forward one season at a time, and the thought of returning to Sweden was always in his head. Next fall, however, he will go to work in Rovaniemi, and floorball will be allowed to stay at least for the time being.
Race broadcasts on channels (Finnish time):
Everything is loaded for this season and success both in Singapore and in the Classic. Later, the owner of two dogs will have time to see more family and friends again and cherish the relationship with padel, tennis and frisbee golf.
– It just feels like other things in life are becoming more interesting. At this point, this seems like a natural continuation.
They say that the journey is more important than the goal, but if next spring Johanna Homi is world champion, Finnish champion and a newly graduated doctor, there should be reason to be satisfied.
Due to Hom’s workload and commitment, none of these goals will be caught at least.