Judo | Rok Draksic was prepared for the Finns’ specialty, but a surprise awaited at the grocery store: “It was a shock”

Four years ago, Finnish judo was in a difficult situation. It was as quiet as a felt sock factory on the value competition front. The Judo Federation decided to seek help from abroad and hired a Slovenian coach to lead the national team.

Rok Draksic had made a convincing mark in his home country and so the expectations of Finnish judo were placed on his shoulders.

“The primary goal was to get an adult competition medal for Finland,” says Draksic.

Such came when Martti Puumalainen took EC gold in the heavyweight category last year. 30 years had already passed since the previous EC medal.

Even more medals were won when Luukas Saha In May, he won the World Championship bronze in the 66-kilogram category. 43 years had passed since the previous World Cup medal.

There has also been success in the youth and Junior leagues.

“There are others behind Marti and Luukas who are not in the spotlight now, but I know they will make history in the future. We also invest in women, there aren’t any in Paris, but certainly in Los Angeles.”

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“I received a lot of proposals from all over the world, including really expensive proposals.”

Training wash In Finland, it will continue even after Paris. Draksic has signed a contract until the next Olympics.

Last year, Draksic was awarded as the male coach of the year by the international sports association. It spawned a lot of contacts from other places as well. He considered his decision for some time, but ended up continuing in Finland.

“I received a lot of proposals from all over the world, also very expensive proposals. This was a big decision for me, but money alone doesn’t decide. We have a good system here now and I have a good connection with the athletes and the direction of the federation. I want to see what this achieves in the next four years.”

But what has life been like in Finland through the eyes of a Slovenian? Of course, the beginning in a new country required some getting used to. Draksic had researched things in advance, so the Finnish reserved mentality did not come as a complete surprise.

“I had read that the Finns are a bit more distant and harder to approach. But I like Finnish people, the first contact can be difficult, but when you get to know them, they are very honest and it’s nice to be in their company.”

Draksic has tried to bring more communication to the Finnish judo community. Sometimes it can be difficult to talk about things because of the language barrier, but even small talk is important.

“I try to be more communicative and open. Sometimes just a little word or a short conversation can make it easier if the athlete has some difficulties.”

Finn the food is also delicious, especially the salmon soup and rye bread. Otherwise, you can get salmon in a Finnish grocery store in a completely different way than in Slovenia.

“It was a shock when in Slovenia you can only get small pieces and here you could buy a big package of fresh fish at once.”

Even the mention of imported Norwegian salmon does not change the enthusiasm.

“In Slovenia it is so expensive. I often buy salmon here and cook it.”

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“Now I really enjoy swimming.”

A lot has happened in Finnish judo in four years, but it is also the case in Draksic’s personal life. He came to Finland with his wife and now they have a 2.5 year old son.

The wife works in a kindergarten, and the son attends an English-language kindergarten.

“The boy already knows a few words of Finnish, even though they speak English in kindergarten and we speak Slovenian at home. I have also decided to try to learn the Finnish language, now that I will continue working here. It is important to live according to the country’s culture,” says Draksic.

The family lives in an apartment building in Espoo. There is of course a sauna in the apartment.

“I really like the sauna, I go to the sauna at home at least once a week. The wife and son also really like the sauna. I used to only use the sauna for weightlifting for competitions, but now I really enjoy the sauna.”

Finland summer has also made an impression. It is warm and bright, but not as scorching hot as in Central Europe.

“You can play and move outside, it’s really great,” says the coach who travels to work by bike.

Draksic also likes winter, especially since in recent years there has been snow in the capital region as well.

“One journalist told me before I came here that I won’t see snow in Helsinki, but he was wrong. The snow reminds me of the winters of my childhood, when it snowed in Slovenia too. Nowadays, there is only a little of it in really high mountains.”

Let’s get back still for tatami. What was wrong in Finland before Draksic came, when there was no success? Draksic does not like to point out faults, the coaches at the time have done their best. But what he has changed is easy to say.

“We train more, harder and smarter.”

Draksic sees his own hiring as a reasonable solution, that the coach was sought from abroad in a difficult situation, in a way from outside the box. At the same time, reforms were made at the federation level and national team activities were centralized under Urhea.

Also national team athletes have accumulated significantly more camp days abroad than before.

“We spend 150–180 days a year abroad, you could say half the year. In the past, there were a maximum of one hundred days of camping abroad per year.”

In a country the size of Finland, there are limited sparring partners. For example, it is not easy for the heavyweight Puumalainen to get domestic opposition. Sometimes, sparring players from abroad have also been invited to Urhea. Draksic considers international sparring very important.

“You have to train with tough guys if you want to be tough. You learn different styles and get to know your opponents. They are then no longer surprises at the Games.”

Gravel sounds too regarding coaching has been heard. Top judoka Emilia Kanerva retired this year and was critical of the judo federation. He felt that the training program did not suit him, but he would have liked to do it more individually.

Read more: Emilia Kanerva became aware of difficult symptoms – She became a stark example of what a common program can do for an individual

According to Draksic, a new training system always brings problems with adaptation.

“Whenever the system is changed, difficulties arise. Adaptation is easier for some and more difficult for others. But when decisions are made, they must also be followed. We must have done something right. Yes, the results also show that.”

The training system has also been modified along the way and individual factors have been taken into account. For example, Luukas Saha lives in Tampere, goes to Helsinki for sports training, but does physical exercises at home. 21-year-old promise of the future Pihla Salonen again practices in Portugal.

“The training system is not unchanged, it develops along the way,” says Draksic.

of Paris two judokas will be seen at the Olympics: Martti Puumalainen and Luukas Saha. They have already met most of the future opponents in the world, won them, maybe lost to some of them.

What are Draksic’s expectations for the Olympics?

“A medal is possible, but I just hope for good matches. They are ready and if we get good matches, we can achieve everything, no special tricks are needed.”

According to the coach, both athletes are hard workers. What kind of individuals are they on the tatami?

“Martti is in the heavyweight division, so the style is a little different from Luukas, who fights in the 66-kilogram category. I would say that Martti is aggressive and Luukas is calm, as they are somewhat opposites of each other.”

The pace towards Paris has been really tight, in judo the Olympic qualifiers have been held for a long time and especially the last two years have been full of competition. Both the athletes and the coach get to breathe for a while after the games.

“We’re going on vacation with the family and we’re going to Slovenia.”

In his home country Draksic comes every couple of months. Judo is quite an important Olympic sport in Slovenia and he has taken Finnish athletes to train at the Slovenian Olympic training center. Last month, the national team camped there for ten days.

There is something in Slovenia that Finland does not have, and the absence of which was a “big shock” for Draksic at first. Of course, it’s about the mountains.

“At home I always go to the mountains, I like to cycle or hike there. We also go to the mountains with athletes, we train at more than 2,000 meters, it’s good for our health.”

There is also an alpine lodge in Urhea, but it gets a snort from Draksic.

“It’s not the same as being in nature!”