"After returning to Finland, Nurmi set a 10,000 m world record that would last for almost 13 years. He now held the 1500 m, the mile, the 3000 m, the 5000 m and the 10,000 m world records simultaneously. In early 1925, Nurmi embarked on a widely publicised tour of the United States. He competed in 55 events (45 indoors) during a five-month period, starting at a sold-out Madison Square Garden on 6 January. His debut was a copy of his feats in Helsinki and Paris. Nurmi defeated Joie Ray and Lloyd Hahn to win the mile and Ritola to"
"Ville Ritola. Nurmi won three gold medals at the 1920 Summer Olympics in Belgium and five at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris, where he was partnered with Ritola, who ran to four gold medals. Volmari Iso-Hollo, the winner of 3000 m steeplechase at the 1932 and 1936 Summer Olympics, was one of the best-known Finnish runners in the 1930s and also nicknamed the Flying Finn. During his tour of the United States in 1940, Taisto Mäki—who held five world records—was regularly referred to as a Flying Finn. The last Flying Finn in running was Lasse Virén, who won the"
"best ever in that sport. Most notably, he won five Olympic medals (four gold) and nine World Championships medals (five gold). Among currently active Finnish ski jumpers, Janne Ahonen has been the most successful. Kalle Palander is a well-known alpine skiing winner, who won the World Championship and Crystal Ball (twice, in Kitzbühel). Tanja Poutiainen has won an Olympic silver medal for alpine skiing, as well as multiple FIS World Cup races. Some of the most outstanding athletes from the past include Hannes Kolehmainen (1890–1966), Paavo Nurmi (1897–1973) and Ville Ritola (1896–1982) who won eighteen gold and seven silver Olympic"
"the 1924 Summer Olympics, Finland, a nation then of only 3.2 million people, came second in the medal count. In the 1920s and 1930s, Finnish long-distance runners dominated the Olympics, with Paavo Nurmi winning a total of nine Olympic gold medals between 1920 and 1928 and setting 22 official world records between 1921 and 1931. Nurmi is often considered the greatest Finnish sportsman and one of the greatest athletes of all time. For over 100 years, Finnish male and female athletes have consistently excelled at the javelin throw. The event has brought Finland nine Olympic gold medals, five world championships,"
"Paavo Nurmi. This time each got one win. First race was 10,000m. Ritola took lead at 1,500m, and only four competitors followed. At 3,000m Ray (US) dropped from the leading group and before 4,000 Beavers (UK). As Wide (Sweden) dropped at 6,500m, only Nurmi followed Ritola. 100m before finish Nurmi sprinted and won by 0.6 seconds. Wide was third, losing by a 45.2s margin. Ritola's last Olympic appearance was in the 5,000 m. Both Ritola and Nurmi had hurt themselves in the steeplechase qualification competitions. Nurmi had a sore hip and Ritola a sore ankle. However, Ritola took again the"
"Paavo the Great. Great Race. Great Dream. Paavo the Great. Great Race. Great Dream. () is an opera in three acts by Finnish composer Tuomas Kantelinen to a libretto by the poet Paavo Haavikko. The opera deals with the life of the Finnish middle- and long-distance runner Paavo Nurmi who won a total of nine Olympic gold medals in the 1920s. It was premiered in the Helsinki Olympic Stadium in 2000 as Helsinki was one of the European Capitals of Culture. The title refers to Nurmi's great ambition to win the marathon race at the 1940 Helsinki Olympics, which were"
"a historic record for Estonia, as the first identical triplets to compete in the same event at the Games. Other notable athletes on the Estonian roster featured Greco-Roman wrestler and 2012 silver medalist Heiki Nabi in the super heavyweight category, and Laser sailor Karl-Martin Rammo, who was selected by the committee as the nation's flag bearer in the opening ceremony. Estonia left Rio de Janeiro with only a bronze medal, signifying its poorest showing in Olympic history since the break-up of the Soviet Union. It was awarded to the rowing foursome of Endrekson, Jämsä, and three-time Olympians Allar Raja and"
"Paavo Nurmi Paavo Johannes Nurmi (; 13 June 1897 – 2 October 1973) was a Finnish middle-distance and long-distance runner. He was nicknamed the ""Flying Finn"" as he dominated distance running in the early 20th century. Nurmi set 22 official world records at distances between 1500 metres and 20 kilometres, and won nine gold and three silver medals in his twelve events in the Olympic Games. At his peak, Nurmi was undefeated for 121 races at distances from 800 m upwards. Throughout his 14-year career, he remained unbeaten in cross country events and the 10,000 m. Born into a working-class"
"kayaker and five-time gold medalist Birgit Fischer (Germany), coxless pairs rower and double gold medalist Matthew Pinsent (Great Britain), show jumper HRH Princess Haya (Jordan), discus thrower and 1992 Olympic champion Romas Ubartas (Lithuania), dressage rider Anky van Grunsven (Netherlands), middle-distance runner Vebjørn Rodal (Norway), two-time Greco-Roman wrestling champion Andrzej Wroński (Poland), five-time rowing champion Elisabeta Lipă (Romania), four-time Olympic handballer Andrey Lavrov (Russia), six-time Olympic water polo player Manuel Estiarte (Spain), and basketball players Carlton Myers (Italy) and Andrew Gaze (Australia). The following is a list of each country's announced flag bearer. The list is sorted by the order"
"43), and rowing legend Olaf Tufte, who sought to add to his medal tally with a fourth medal at his sixth straight Olympics. Apart from Flesjå and Tufte, several Norwegian athletes also returned to compete in Rio de Janeiro, including handball team captain Kari Aalvik Grimsbø, middle-distance runner Henrik Ingebrigtsen in the men's 1500 m, Gambian-born sprinter Jaysuma Saidy Ndure, and small-bore rifle shooter and London 2012 finalist Ole-Kristian Bryhn, who was nominated by the committee to lead the delegation as the flag bearer in the opening ceremony. Norway left Rio de Janeiro with four bronze medals, signifying the country's"
"virtue of a top finish from North Western Europe in the individual FEI Olympic rankings, signifying the nation's Olympic comeback to the sporting discipline for the first time since 2000. Finland has entered four golfers (two per gender) into the Olympic tournament. Mikko Ilonen (world no. 235), Roope Kakko (world no. 293), Noora Tamminen (world no. 274), and Ursula Wikström (world no. 256) qualified directly among the top 60 eligible players for their respective individual events based on the IGF World Rankings as of 11 July 2016. Finland has entered one artistic gymnast into the Olympic competition. Oskar Kirmes had"
"from Röyttä""). Ville Pörhölä Frans Wilhelm ""Ville"" Pörhölä (originally Horneman, 24 December 1897 – 28 November 1964) was a Finnish athlete who competed in shot put, discus throw, hammer throw and weight throw. Pörhölä won the gold medal in shot put at the 1920 Summer Olympics. He also competed in discus throw finishing in eighth place and in weight throw in which he was ninth. He later concentrated on work leaving his sports career behind him. He re-emerged in the sports scene as a hammer thrower in 1929, and later became an Olympic silver medalist in 1932 and European champion"
"and Harri Kirvesniemi and ice hockey player Raimo Helminen. Finland at the 2008 Summer Olympics Finland competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, People's Republic of China. The athletes were named in four selections: first took place on December 19, 2007, 2nd on April 16, 3rd on May 20 and 4th on July 21, 2008. The goal of the Finnish Olympic team in the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games was three medals with at least one gold medal. Shooter Juha Hirvi and dressage rider Kyra Kyrklund made Finnish olympic history by participating in their sixth Olympic Games. They shared the"
"and Outi Borgenström have represented Pyrintö, as well as current women's national team members Anni-Maija Fincke and Venla Niemi. Pyrintö has won Jukola relay, Venla relay and Tiomila several times. In the native sport of Finland, pesäpallo, Pyrintö won four times women's Finnish championship (1933, 1935, 1936 and 1937). Club's men's team achieved silver in 1925 and bronze in 1926 and 1949. Tampereen Pyrintö Tampereen Pyrintö is a Finnish multi-sport club from Tampere. Pyrintö representatives have achieved several Olympic medals and other success. In the year 2017, Pyrintö has sport sections in cross-country skiing, basketball, ski jumping, weightlifting, orienteering, athletics,"
"in 1971 and died in Helsinki aged 86. -A statue for Ville Ritola was prepared by sculptor Maija Nuotio in 1978 and it is placed in his homeplace Peräseinäjoki (now part of Seinäjoki). -A sports hall in Peräseinäjoki was named RitolaHalli -At Ville Ritola's funeral in 1982 the coffin bearers included other Olympic heroes like Lasse Viren. -Kunto-Ritola, annual long-distance event Ritola's career inspired a phrase into colloquial Finnish. """"Ottaa ritolat"""", translating as something like ""pull a Ritola"", means to make a quick exit from somewhere. Ville Ritola Vilho ""Ville"" Eino Ritola (18 January 1896 – 24 April 1982) was"
"medals in the 1910s and 1920s. They are also considered to be the first of a generation of great Finnish middle and long-distance runners (and subsequently, other great Finnish sportsmen) often named the ""Flying Finns"". Another long-distance runner, Lasse Virén (born 1949), won a total of four gold medals during the 1972 and 1976 Summer Olympics. Also, in the past, Riku Kiri, Jouko Ahola and Janne Virtanen have been the greatest strength athletes in the country, participating in the World's Strongest Man competition between 1993 and 2000. The 1952 Summer Olympics, officially known as the ""Games of the XV Olympiad"","
"three appearances at the Olympics, Finnish runners dominated the event. Tying in with the emergence of the Flying Finns, Hannes Kolehmainen won the inaugural event then Paavo Nurmi won the following two editions, winning gold medals both individually and in the team race. Haile Gebrselassie, Kenenisa Bekele and Paul Tergat, all highly successful African long-distance runners, jointly issued an open letter in 2008 to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Jacques Rogge, urging him to consider the re-instatement of cross country as an Olympic sport. The International Association of Athletics Federations and athletics media have supported the idea of including"
"Marja-Liisa Kirvesniemi and Harri Kirvesniemi and ice hockey player Raimo Helminen. Juha Hirvi's manager is Finnish Sport Management Agency SportElite. Juha Hirvi Juha Hirvi (born March 25, 1960 in Kymi) is a Finnish sport shooter. He won the silver medal in men's 50 metre rifle three positions at the 2000 Summer Olympics. He has also won two silver medals in ISSF World Shooting Championships. He was the flag-bearer for Finland at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics opening ceremony. Juha Hirvi made Finnish Olympic history in 2008 when he participated in his sixth Olympic Games, which is a record among Finnish"
"Ville Pörhölä Frans Wilhelm ""Ville"" Pörhölä (originally Horneman, 24 December 1897 – 28 November 1964) was a Finnish athlete who competed in shot put, discus throw, hammer throw and weight throw. Pörhölä won the gold medal in shot put at the 1920 Summer Olympics. He also competed in discus throw finishing in eighth place and in weight throw in which he was ninth. He later concentrated on work leaving his sports career behind him. He re-emerged in the sports scene as a hammer thrower in 1929, and later became an Olympic silver medalist in 1932 and European champion in 1934."
"also competed four years earlier, including triple jumper Muhammad Halim and sprinter LaVerne Jones-Ferrette, who headed to her fourth straight Games as the oldest and most experienced member (aged 35) of the team. Laser sailor and Pan American Games finalist Cy Thompson led his delegation as the flag bearer for the Virgin Islands in the opening ceremony. Virgin Islands, however, failed to win a single Olympic medal in Rio de Janeiro. The nation's previous medal feat happened at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, where sailor Peter Holmberg bagged the silver in the Finn class. Athletes from the Virgin Islands"
"Bas van de Goor Sebastiaan Jacques Henri ""Bas"" van de Goor (born September 4, 1971 in Oss) is a retired volleyball player from the Netherlands, who represented his native country at two consecutive Summer Olympics, starting in 1996. He was elected twice as the most valuable player of the Olympic (1996-2000). At his Olympic debut he won the gold medal, alongside his younger brother and three-time Olympian Mike, by defeating arch rivals Italy (3-2) in the final. Four years later, Van de Goor ended up in fifth place at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. His national volleyball coach"
"1942, Edström was the acting president until the end of World War II, when he was formally elected president. He played an important role in reviving the Olympic Movement after the war. In 1952, he retired from this position and was succeeded by Avery Brundage. In 1931, Edström was involved in the controversial decision to ban Finnish runner Paavo Nurmi from competing at the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics, as he saw Nurmi as a professional athlete. This affected Finland's relationship to Sweden negatively as Paavo Nurmi was considered a Finnish national hero. Nurmi finally got his revenge during 1952 Olympic"
"feat which has never since been repeated. He set new world records for the 1500 m and the 5000 m with just an hour between the races, and took gold medals in both distances in less than two hours at the 1924 Olympics. Seemingly unaffected by the Paris heat wave, Nurmi won all his races and returned home with five gold medals, although he was frustrated that Finnish officials had refused to enter him for the 10,000 m. Struggling with injuries and motivation issues after his exhaustive U.S. tour in 1925, Nurmi found his long-time rivals Ville Ritola and Edvin"
"and had altogether 19 siblings, five of whom had died in infancy. 6 of the children were from his father's first marriage, 14 from the second, including Ville. In 1913 he followed seven of his siblings and emigrated to the United States to work as a carpenter. There he started training in 1919 when he was already 23 years old. Later he many times referred to this late start of his sports career, and how it put him in a disadvantage compared to his rivals, especially the more famous of the Flying Finns, Paavo Nurmi, who started systematic training in"
"marathon field when 155 men from 80 countries competed in the race where he placed 63rd overall. Tiidrek Nurme Tiidrek Nurme (born 11 November 1985) is an Estonian long and middle-distance runner, the current national record holder of the 1500 metres and 3000 metres. Nurme is one of only four men in the history of the Olympic Games to have qualified for and competed in the 1,500 metres (2008) and the marathon (2016) in separate Olympics during their career. The other three are Rod Dixon of New Zealand (1972, 1984), Luis Feiteira of Portugal (1996, 2012) and Bayron Piedra of"
"done so - the others being Raimo Helminen (ice hockey), Teemu Selänne (ice hockey), Kyra Kyrklund (dressage), and Juha Hirvi (shooting). All results are sourced from the International Ski Federation (FIS). Note: Until the 1999 World Championships and the 1994 Olympics, World Championship and Olympic races were included in the World Cup scoring system. <br> Marja-Liisa Kirvesniemi Marja-Liisa Kirvesniemi (née Hämäläinen; born 10 September 1955) is a Finnish former cross-country skier. She was the big figure at the 1984 Olympics in Sarajevo, winning all three individual cross-country skiing events (5, 10 and 20 km), and a bronze medal for Finland"
"Lucas Vila Lucas Martín Vila (born 23 August 1986) is an Argentine field hockey player who plays for German club Mannheimer HC and the Argentina national team as a forward. He made his debut for the national squad in 2005, after having played the Junior World Cup in Rotterdam, Netherlands. His older brothers Matías and Rodrigo were also field hockey players for Argentina. At the 2012 Summer Olympics, Vila competed for Argentina in the men's tournament. Lucas won the bronze medal at the 2014 Men's Hockey World Cup and three medals at the Pan American Games. He was part of"
"Tampereen Pyrintö Tampereen Pyrintö is a Finnish multi-sport club from Tampere. Pyrintö representatives have achieved several Olympic medals and other success. In the year 2017, Pyrintö has sport sections in cross-country skiing, basketball, ski jumping, weightlifting, orienteering, athletics, cheerleading and speed skating. In the past it has also had teams in pesäpallo and ice hockey. In athletics, Pyrintö is one of Finland's most successful clubs. Long jumper Tommi Evilä, javelin thrower Tero Järvenpää and hammer thrower Mia Strömmer have been club's internationally most notable athletes in recent years. In the past, Pyrintö athletes, like Akilles Järvinen, Eero Berg and Hugo"
"Clas Thunberg Arnold Clas (""Classe"") Robert Thunberg (5 April 1893 – 28 April 1973) was a Finnish speed skater who won five Olympic gold medals – three at the inaugural Winter Olympics held in Chamonix in 1924 (along with a silver and a bronze medal) and two at the 1928 Winter Olympics held in St. Moritz. He was the most successful athlete at both of these Winter Olympics, sharing the honour for 1928 Winter Olympics with Johan Grøttumsbraaten of Norway. No other athlete ever won such a high fraction of all Olympic events at a single Games. He was born"
"representing Sweden in the Olympic Games of Rio 2016. Nina Grawender was born on October 15, 1987 in Gothenburg, Sweden. Beach volleyball team Karin and Nina Karin Lundqvist and Nina Grawender are professional beach volleyball players from Sweden. They started playing together in February 2013 and by achieving good results on the European Tour and World Tour they were selected as Sweden's national team in September 2013. Karin and Nina are coached by Wesley Pinheiro, from Brazil. Karin Lundqvist and Nina Grawender's best results in 2013 are 9th place at the European Championships in Klagenfurt, Austria, and first place at"
"Finland at the 2008 Summer Olympics Finland competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, People's Republic of China. The athletes were named in four selections: first took place on December 19, 2007, 2nd on April 16, 3rd on May 20 and 4th on July 21, 2008. The goal of the Finnish Olympic team in the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games was three medals with at least one gold medal. Shooter Juha Hirvi and dressage rider Kyra Kyrklund made Finnish olympic history by participating in their sixth Olympic Games. They shared the record with three winter Olympians: cross-country skiers Marja-Liisa Kirvesniemi"
"Matías Vila Matías Damián Vila (born 7 July 1979 in Buenos Aires) is a field hockey midfielder from Argentina, who made his debut for the national squad in 1997, and competed for his native country in the 2000 Summer Olympics, 2004 Summer Olympics and 2012 Summer Olympics. Vila started to play hockey aged seven. After the Athens Games he moved from Banco Provincia to a Dutch club Tilburg, which had just been promoted to the top league in the Netherlands, together with fellow-international Tomás MacCormik. His younger brothers Rodrigo and Lucas are also field hockey internationals for Argentina. With the"
"post to become Honorary President. The ""Comte"" led the IOC until his death in 1942, when he was succeeded by his Vice-President Sigfrid Edström. When IOC president Henri de Baillet-Latour died in 1942, Swedish industrialist Sigfrid Edström took over as the acting president until the end of World War II, when he was formally elected IOC President. He played an important role in reviving the Olympic Movement after the war. In 1931, Edström was involved in the controversial decision to ban legendary Finnish runner Paavo Nurmi from competing at the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, as the IOC considered"