The big summer in athletics is just beginning, but athletes are already in a hurry to give screens for the World Cup and European Championships this summer. The Oregon World Cup qualifiers and ranking results must be completed by the end of Midsummer week.
13.6. 20:29 • Updated June 13. 20:38
At the previous World Championships in Athletics in Doha in 2019, Finland received the maximum number, ie three representatives, of the traditional men’s spear and the top sport of recent years, women’s fast fencing. This year, it is possible that full representation will remain a dream in both.
In Doha, the Finnish trio of quick fences, Annimari Korte, Reetta Hurske and Nooralotta Nezirimade his way to the semi – finals after falling 13 seconds in the initial rounds.
Currently, of the trio members, only Hurske’s situation looks good and 13 seconds falls short of routine performance.
At the end of May, Hurske ran his best of the season at 12.92 in the Lahti GP, which is only 0.08 seconds away from the World Cup limit. The record for Tampere is 12.78 for 2019.
Annimari Korte has not run any competition yet. Finland’s record season last season ended with the Tokyo Olympics and buttocks surgery, and she has only run one race this season. The latest setback was an interruption last Wednesday at the Espoo GP.
Although Kortte’s comments after the race left questions about the continuation of the season, he is currently competing in the Paavo Nurmi Games on Tuesday.
Nooralotta Neziri is caught in 34th place, but a long-suffering heel injury and recent illness with coronavirus have reduced his chances of collecting points.
Neziri withdrew from Paavo Nurmi’s competitions, which makes his situation even more difficult.
The goal is a 20-athlete World Cup team
The Super Summer of Athletics is just beginning, but screenings for the Oregon World Championships starting in July and the European Championships in Munich in August are now being made.
The result limits that qualify for the World Championships and the results to be calculated must be made in the track and field sports by 26 June. It has been a year to make a profit, as the window opened on June 28, 2021, in multi-matches and road sports as early as the end of 2020.
Finnish Sports Federation’s top sports coaching manager Tuomo Salonen according to the next couple of weeks will tell a lot about the size of both teams in the summer, even though the results window for the European Championships will not close until July 26th.
Of the domestic events, the Paavo Nurmi competitions, the Kuortane GP and the Oulu ranking competitions are good points competitions, so we are now living decisive weeks.
– The World Championship ranking closes at Midsummer, but these are also very important weeks for the European Championships, because there are already quieter and less good points competitions in July. During this June, the athletes must also succeed in the European Championships, Salonen says.
The performance limits for the Oregon World Championships are rock-hard, the same as for the Tokyo Olympics last summer. In Tokyo, Finland had 22 representatives in athletics, as was the case at the 2019 World Championships in Doha.
– The goal is for 20 athletes to go to Oregon, and every place on top of that 20 is a positive thing. Would love to have a couple of places in it over twenty, that would be really great, Salonen says.
11 athletes have been nominated for the team. In addition to them, the World Cup limit has been made by two athletes.
Paavo Nurmi’s competitions are the most important competitions in June
The Paavo Nurmi Games in Turku on Tuesday 14 June is perhaps the most important competition for Finnish athletes in the early summer. As a Golden League event in the Continental Tour of the International Athletics Federation, it has been classified as an A-level competition.
Finnish athletes redeem their place in the World Championships and European Championships by breaking the profit limit or ranking high enough in the athlete rankings. 32 athletes can enter the field sports of the World Championships. The number of participants in track races varies from 27 to 56 depending on the distance. There are only 24 places available in all-round matches.
As next week’s Kuortane GP race has risen from a bronze level in the Continental Tour series to a silver level race, athletes are promised better ranking points than in previous years. The last opportunity to show up, the Oulu ranking competition, is a B-level competition, like the Kuortane GP race.
Ranking is based not only on the athlete’s results, but also on the rankings in the various competitions. The same score is always obtained for the same result, but the ranking points depend on the level of competition. The ranking is calculated as the average of the athlete’s top five results during the opening hours of the qualifier window.
Level rating system:
Ranking points for competitions at different levels:
SE men Lakka and Pulli need more points
In addition to the athletes already selected for the team, the javelin thrower has broken the result limit in the strong World Championships Oliver Helander and a hurdler Viivi Lehikoinen. Through the ranking, the fast-paced Hurske, a spear thrower, is in good settings Lassi Etelätalo and a triple jumper Kristiina Mäkelä.
– There are some really interesting names that need a long time yet ranking points or a straight score limit. They are Elmo Lakka, Kristian Pullimaybe Mikko Paavola and other male jumpers. In women, for example Lotta KemppinenNooralotta Neziri, Annimari Korte and Ella JunnilaSalonen lists.
After Salonen’s interview, in addition to Kortte and Nezir, Lotta Kemppinen’s situation has also given rise to worrying information. The 60-meter European Championship silver medalist in the inner track still suffers from an Achilles tendon injury.
Kristian Pulli, the Finnish record holder for the long jump, is only scarce in the rankings. However, the bull’s jump of exactly eight meters over the weekend improves his points average. Elmo Lakka, the SE man of the fast-paced SEs, dropped out of the rankings by a few places, but good placements and times from the upcoming competitions can restore the Jyväskylä resident to the World Cup ticket.
The length of the men is not in the program of the Paavo Nurmi Games, but the 110-meter hurdles are.
The ranking situation is alive and can change quickly thanks to a few good competitions. For most sports, the rankings are averaged over the top five, but in multi-matches only two. That is why, for example, a seven-player Maria Huntington can raise their ranking dramatically in one good match. With his current points, he is running out of a race spot.
– There is also a fairly long list of those who have a chance at the World Cup, but they will be required to compete more this June. Midsummer week will start to see who needs more for one points race. Now many have a need for three or four good points competitions, Tuomo Salonen says.
Stick jumper Elina Lampela was one of those athletes who would have risen to the race machine with a few good races. The hunt for the World Championship place continued perfectly in the Espoo GP with a result of 450. However, the competition ended in an injury, and the magnetic resonance imaging revealed a ligament injury in Lampela’s ankle, which prevents him from competing for at least a couple of weeks. Lampela is currently in the last World Cup ranking.
Injury spring
The success of the competition is expected above all from the Team Finland group appointed by the Finnish Sports Confederation, which consists of the sharpest tip of the national team. Of the athletes in the group, a three-jumper Simo Lipsanensprinter Lotta Kemppinen, middle distance runner Sara Kuivistofast-paced Lotta Harala as well as heptathlete Maria Huntington have not yet begun through.
Lipsanen’s coach Petri Ruotsalainen confirmed to Urheilu that Lipsanen is not aiming for a World Championship place. Due to an ankle injury, the main goal of the summer has been transferred to the European Championships.
If you have already recovered from your injuries Wilma Murto and Ella Junnila as well as athletes from the national team, such as young promises Eemil Helander and Topias Lainecounting, there is talk of well over a dozen top domestic names who have suffered injuries during the spring and early summer.
Tuomo Salonen, the head coach of top sports, does not dispute the injury.
– It’s always unfortunate when we have injuries. During the spring, in the run-up to the race, power will actually rise and competitive performance will be sought, with occasional injuries. The important thing is that we don’t have an awful lot of athletes who would be on the sidelines all summer, Salonen says.
Salonen also reminds that the ailments are very different. Some have had an illness and some have a stress-related injury. A few, such as heptathlon Maria Huntington and hurdle runner Eemil Helander, have had unfortunate accidents that have affected the early part of the season.
– Even though we are talking about a rather large group of athletes, it is also partly a coincidence. We should not go behind the fact that everything is caught by chance, but every injury is in itself too much. Each case is unique, and for one reason, you can’t nail the whole bunch. One has to look at what has happened in any situation and what can be changed in the future.