Team Finland - Profile

Highlights:

@ PYEONGCHANG 2018
Finland fielded a team of 96 athletes (59 men, 37 women) competing in 11 sports: Alpine skiing, biathlon, cross-country skiing, curling, figure skating, freestyle skiing, ice hockey, Nordic combined, ski jumping, snowboarding and speed skating.

It won six medals (one gold), including five medals for its women. Cross-country skier Krista Lahteenmaki won three medals, with a silver in the 30km mass start and bronze in the 10km freestyle and skiathlon.

PYEONGCHANG 2018 MEDALS
Cross-Country Skiing: 4 (1-1-2)
Ice Hockey: 1 (0-0-1)
Snowboarding: 1 (0-0-1)
Total: 6 (1-1-4)

PYEONGCHANG 2018 FLAGBEARERS
Opening Ceremony: Janne Ahonen (SJP)
Closing Ceremony: Mika Poutala (SSK)

OLYMPIC GAMES HISTORY
Finland first competed at the Athens 1906 Intercalated Games and then the London 1908 Olympic Games. It has since never missed an Olympic Games or Olympic Winter Games. It had two figure skaters at the Antwerp 1920 Olympic Games and made its first Olympic Winter Games appearance at Chamonix 1924.

Finland has won 167 medals (43 gold) at the Olympic Winter Games (168 and 44 including the 1920 figure skating events, in which Walter Jakobsson and Ludowika Jakobsson-Eilers won gold in pairs). Its cross-country skiers have won 80 medals (21 gold).

Finland has also been among the top nations in speed skating and ski jumping. Three Finnish cross-country skiers have each won seven Olympic medals - Veikko Hakulinen (1952-60), Eero Mantyranta (1960-68) and Marja-Liisa Kirvesniemi-Hamalainen (1984-94), each of them winning three gold medals. They are joined by speed skater Clas Thunberg, who won seven medals, with five gold medals in 1924 and 1928. Ski jumper Matti Nykanen won four medals.

Speed skater Julius Skutnabb won a gold medal in 10,000m at the St. Moritz 1928 Olympic Winter Games and won silver in the 5000m. In doing so at the age of 38 he became, and remains, the oldest male speed skater to win an individual Olympic medal.

Ski jumper Toni Nieminen won the large hill ski jump and the team event at Albertville 1992 and became the youngest Winter Olympic champion at 16 years old. At PyeongChang 2018, ski jumper Janne Ahonen competed in his seventh Olympic Games at 40 years of age.

Finland's greatest successes have come in the distance running events at the Olympic Games. In those events, led by Hannes Kolehmainen, Paavo Nurmi and Lasse Viren, Finland has been the preeminent nation, until the recent advent of the African distance runners. Prior to World War II, Finland was also the dominant nation in wrestling.

Finland has won 472 Olympic medals, 144 of them gold. Paavo Nurmi, known as "The Flying Finn" and "The King of Runners", has been its greatest Olympian with 12 medals and nine gold.

OLYMPIC HOSTS
Helsinki - 1952 Olympic Games

MILESTONES

First Competitor, Female: Ludowika Jakobsson-Eilers (26 April 1920) - 1920 - Figure Skating (Pairs) - Gold
First Competitor, Female: Ludowika Jakobsson-Eilers (31 January 1924) - 1924 - Figure Skating (Pairs) - Silver

First Competitor, Male: Sakari Ilmanen (25 April 1920) - 1920 - Figure Skating (Singles) - 5th
First Competitor, Male: Julius Skutnabb (26 January 1924) - 1924 - Speed Skating (500m) - 10th

Youngest Competitor, Female: Emma Laaksonen-Terho (16y-053d) - 1998 - Ice Hockey - Bronze
Youngest Competitor, Male: Hannu Manninen (15y-307d) - 1994 - Nordic Combined - 38th

Oldest Competitor, Female: Riikka Nieminen-Valila (44y-254d) - 2018 - Ice Hockey - Bronze
Oldest Competitor, Male: Tomi Rantamaki (49y-147d) - 2018 - Curling (Mixed Doubles) - 7th

First Medallist, Female: Ludowika Jakobsson-Eilers (26 April 1920) - 1920 - Figure Skating (Pairs) - Gold
First Medallist, Female: Ludowika Jakobsson-Eilers (31 January 1924) - 1924 - Figure Skating (Pairs) - Silver

First Medallist, Male: Walter Jakobsson (26 April 1920) - 1920 - Figure Skating (Pairs) - Gold
First Medallist, Male: Julius Skutnabb (26 January 1924) - 1924 - Speed Skating (5000m) - Silver
First Medallist, Male: Clas Thunberg (26 January 1924) - 1924 - Speed Skating (500m) - Bronze

First Gold Medallist, Female: Ludowika Jakobsson-Eilers (26 April 1920) - 1920 - Figure Skating (Pairs) - Gold
First Gold Medallist, Female: Lydia Wideman (23 February 1952) - 1952 - Cross-Country Skiing (10km) - Gold

First Gold Medallist, Male: Walter Jakobsson (26 April 1920) - 1920 - Figure Skating (Pairs) - Gold
First Gold Medallist, Male: Clas Thunberg (26 January 1924) - 1924 - Speed Skating (5000m) - Gold

Youngest Medallist, Female: Emma Laaksonen-Terho (16y-062d) - 1998 - Ice Hockey - Bronze
Youngest Medallist, Male: Toni Nieminen (16y-254d) - 1992 - Ski Jumping (Normal Hill Individual) - Bronze

Youngest Gold Medallist, Female: Marjo Matikainen (23y-013d) - 1988 - Cross-Country Skiing (5km Classical) - Gold
Youngest Gold Medallist, Male: Toni Nieminen (16y-259d) - 1992 - Ski Jumping (Large Hill Team) - Gold

Oldest Medallist, Female: Riikka Nieminen-Valila (44y-254d) - 2018 - Ice Hockey - Bronze
Oldest Medallist, Male: Teemu Selanne (43y-234d) - 2014 - Ice Hockey - Bronze

Oldest Gold Medallist, Female: Ludowika Jakobsson-Eilers (35y-275d) - 1920 - Figure Skating (Pairs) - Gold
Oldest Gold Medallist, Male: Walter Jakobsson (38y-080d) - 1920 - Figure Skating (Pairs) - Gold

Most Medals, Female: Marja-Liisa Kirvesniemi-Hamalainen (7 | 3-0-4) - Cross-Country Skiing
Most Medals, Male: Clas Thunberg (7 | 5-1-1) - Speed Skating
Most Medals, Male: Veikko Hakulinen (7 | 3-3-1) - Cross-Country Skiing
Most Medals, Male: Eero Mantyranta (7 | 3-2-2) - Cross-Country Skiing

Most Gold Medals, Female: Marja-Liisa Kirvesniemi-Hamalainen (3) - Cross-Country Skiing
Most Gold Medals, Male: Clas Thunberg (5) - Speed Skating

Additional Information:

http://olympiakomitea.fi/

Anthem Title: Maamme (Our Land)

Anthem Composer: Music: Fredrik Pacius, Lyrics: Johan Ludvig Runeberg (Swedish), Paavo Eemil Kajander (Finnish)

Anthem Inducted: 1848

Founding Date: 1907

IOC Recognition Date: 1907

Delegation President: Jan Vapaavuori

Delegation Secretary General: Mikko Salonen

IOC Members: Current:Sari Essayah (entry into IOC: 2016)Emma Terho (entry into IOC: 2018)Former:Reinhold, Baron von Willebrand (1908-1919)Ernst Krogius (1920-1948)Jukka Rangell (1938-1967)Erik von Frenckell (1948-1976)Paavo Honkajuuri (1967-1981)Peter Tallberg (1976-2015)Pirjo Wilmi-Haggman (1981-1999)Jari Kurri (2002-2006)Saku Koivu (2006-2014)

First OG/PG Appearance: 1924

Number OG/PG Appearances: 23

Summary: