Five-time Paralympic gold medalist and one of the most significant parasports influencers in Finnish history Veikko Puputti has died, says the Finnish Paralympic Committee.
79-year-old Puputti died in his hometown Kankaanpää on July 30.
Puput’s career as a para athlete was successful. He is a five-time Paralympic ice skating gold medalist. Puputti won the first two gold medals at the Winter Paralympics held in Geilo, Norway in 1980, and the remaining three ice skating golds came four years later at the Innsbruck Paralympics in 1984.
Puputti was injured during his second year of physical education studies at the University of Jyväskylä, when he fell off a gymnastics sled and caused him a spinal cord injury.
In addition to his sports career, Puputti has been the leader of the Finnish team at the Paralympics.
Puput’s son Henri Puputti is known in Finland as one of the best baseball players of the last decade.