Canada–Finland 17–19
World Championship bronze for Finland.
National team shirt carrying is one of the biggest dreams of every athlete. Representing your home country is an honor and a privilege that is granted, especially in prestigious competitions, to only a few of the best in their field.
Even rarer is a group of athletes who also represent their country as a civilian. American football’s recent World Cup bronze medalist Sara Lehtonen belongs to them.
Lehtonen, who is studying international politics at the University of Birmingham, finished his four-month internship at the Finnish Embassy in London on the eve of the Games.
“I have had the idea for a very long time that I would like to work at the Finnish embassy. The more I’ve been around the world, the more proud I am of being Finnish.”
In the fall, he will be working at the Finnish-British Chamber of Commerce.
“Fortunately, I will be able to work with Finnish companies from now on as well”, Lehtonen is happy.
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“The more I’ve been in the world, the more proud I am of my Finnishness.”
Security policy hot topics, Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine and Finland’s NATO application, are standard topics of discussion in Britain as well.
“I study a lot about international security. It’s a subject of my interest, and that’s how we’ve been in close contact with the situation in Ukraine,” says Lehtonen.
The debate surrounding the war in Britain has been interesting to him.
“However, we are talking about a rather abstract topic in the battle of the great powers. Russia and America are buzzing in the speech, and the war is seen as a very distant thing when compared to the Finnish perspective”, Lehtonen feels.
“There, fear and concern for the safety of one’s own country are present in a completely different way. It has brought a great perspective to the discussion and in a way has helped me to be able to look at the situation further.”
Finland’s NATO application is usually the first thing that Lehtonen’s interlocutors refer to when they hear that he is from Finland.
“Furthermore, Finland has been featured a lot in the British media. Yes, our joining NATO is clearly moving and has been quoted internationally.”
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“The war is seen as a very distant thing when compared to the Finnish perspective.”
Sara Lehtonen likes to talk about the Finnish school system in England. “In Finland, everyone basically has the same chances to succeed, whether it’s in sports or studies or otherwise in life. It’s the kind of flag I want to hold high when I’m in the world.”
Lehtonen is now playing American football for the second time abroad. The breeder of Seinäjoki Crocodiles, who started the sport in the spring of 2016, immediately after his first season moved to France to join Dragons de Paris.
“We had a French quarterback at Crocodiles Sylvie Aibeche that summer. I graduated from high school and I didn’t really have a plan of what I was going to do. I then went to France to play for the winter of 2016-2017.”
After returning to Finland, Lehtonen played for Seinäjoki, from where he moved to Tampere Saints for the summer of 2020. The direction for the future had already been found in the European Championships played in Leeds in 2019, where Finland won gold.
“Birmingham Lions are the best women’s teams in Europe. I had seen in the media that they have a professional and professional attitude, so it started to interest me. I got to know their players and my current spouse at the Leeds games. That’s where the idea came from, that you could study here.”
Lehtonen, who will turn 25 on Monday, says that he had a good time in Birmingham both with his studies and with Yankee football. Big changes had taken place in the Lions just before Lehtonen’s arrival.
“There’s a really hard-working atmosphere there, even though in the British Isles it’s a pity that the women’s game is played only one-on-one,” says Lehtonen, referring to the seven-on-seven game format.
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“I graduated from high school and I didn’t really have a plan of what I was going to do. Then I went to France to play.”
His university In the University of Birmingham team, Lehtonen has already made history. This season she became the first woman in the university league starting line-up in the entire British Isles.
“It was a really great moment in my career,” he says.
The first home game of the college season is always a big deal in Birmingham. The event called Xplosion was watched by around 4,000 spectators this year.
“There will be fireworks, food stalls and the like. It was a great experience for myself. I didn’t start in that game, but I was in the playing lineup,” says Lehtonen.
Playing in the offensive line, Lehtonen got to play the blocking center forward position in the Lions’ last regular season match. At the same time, the first career touchdown was scored.
“I had some great airs planned, but I was so upset at that point when the lineman was suddenly made to run in the heat on every down [yrityksellä]”, says Lehtonen.
“Yes, raising your hands and doing a few jumps with your teammates made it happen.”
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“I had great ventilations planned, but at that point I was so lost.”
Sara Lehtonen (center) started American football in the spring of 2016. “I’ve always been naturally really big, but still quite athletic. The physics is fine quite naturally, and then I got to go through the sports skills,” he says. Picture from the Sweden match.
Finland beat Canada 19–17 in Sunday’s WC bronze medal match. Finland got the decisive three points Laura Pulkkinen with a field goal just over a minute before the end.
“You had to fight hard until literally the last second,” Lehtonen repeats.
Pulkkinen kicked two field goals and one extra point for Finland. The quarterback who ran for two touchdowns also scored Emilia Räty.
“The team had quite a big lift from that lost game against the Yankees, but we now proved that we play well as a team,” says Lehtonen, referring to the semi-final against the United States.
“It was a blessing in the shell of a curse, because it made me hungry. Yes, we want to be the best one day.”
“The team had a pretty big lift from that lost Yankee game, but we proved today that we play well as a team.”
“We went to get the medal and got it. The Yankee game was a blessing in the shell of a curse that left me hungry. Yes, we want to be the best one day.”
Volleyball the doors of working life are open all over the world for Lehtone, who ended up in Yankee football circles half-accidentally. He will return to Finland one day, and work assignment in developing countries is also of interest.
“Things are so good in Finland, Europe and Western countries that we easily become blind to what happens when there are no opportunities and, for example, war, insecurity or inequality overshadow daily affairs and future plans,” he reasons.
“It’s something I’d like to learn and see more of.”
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