Athletics Ella Junnila, 23, will be the boss of the new association – “We are notoriously poor as church cats”

Ella Junnilan the goal is to be the first Finnish woman to jump two meters in height.

Determined Junnila also has other goals. He wants to improve the position of athletes in Finland.

The goal has progressed from idea to practice, when Junnila has been founding his own association, the Finnish Athletes Association, which focuses on the protection of the interests of athletes in the sport. Junnila is the chairman of the board of the association.

Triple jumper Topias Koukkula is the vice chairman of the board and a close working couple in Junnila ‘s affairs. The board members are the hurdler Nooralotta Neziri, Sevens Fighter Maria Huntington, pole vaulter Wilma Murto, runner Elmo Lakka, track winder Toni Piispanen, javelin thrower Lassi Etelätalo and sprinter Konsta Alatupa.

As late as Tuesday evening, the association elected a track winder to the board as additional names Esa-Pekka Mattilan and a bulleter Nico Oksasen.

“I am proud that the founding members of the association are athletes from such a wide level and from different sides of the national team,” Junnila tells HS.

The association has its own rules, which are largely the handwriting of Koukkula.

The first year is to have 150 members.

“The membership potential is 286 active athletes,” Junnila calculates.

An athlete who finishes his or her career can be an alumni member of the association, keeping in touch with athletes or stakeholders.

“There is a lot of information to be drawn in athletics.”

No membership fee is charged for members of the association.

“There are no financial barriers to joining. We are notoriously poor as a church. We are not a trade union and no one is working, ”says Junnila.

Association seeks to make the voice of athletes heard in the five committees of the Finnish Athletics Federation (SUL), which are the competition, coaching, ethics, organization and international committees.

“Those committees have a direct impact on our daily lives,” Junnila says.

The association is also gaining a seat on SUL’s board. The decision on this will be made by the SUL Federal Council in the spring. According to Junnila, the organization has been well received by SUL’s management.

“The current executive leadership of the association is athlete-oriented. We want to work with the union. That gives the best result, ”says Junnila.

Chairman of SUL and former tithe Sami Itani has supported the establishment of the association from the outset.

In ball sports, as in hockey and football, has been a well-functioning and much-accomplished player association for a long time.

In team sports, an athlete is employed by his club and receives a salary for playing sports. This is not the case in an individual sport such as athletics.

Athletes Association. wants to emphasize the professionalism of athletes.

“The goal is for the association to be able to improve the athlete’s professional practice and legal position in Finland and to make athletics an attractive and realistic profession, not just a hobby,” says Junnila.

The association also wants to influence the organizers of the race that athletes are paid.

“Let’s think you don’t have to pay anything to an athlete. By no means do I want to convey that I recommend for the mother to be inactive. ”

It feels it is strange that athletes have not had their own interest group in the past, even though there has been an obvious need for it.

There has been talk of a similar association in the past, but it has not led to concrete results.

“Maybe the time is ripe now. It is possible for an athlete to get far as a professional, and not just while studying sports, ”says Junnila.

The establishment of our own association has been under consideration since last autumn’s match in Sweden.

“The reception was positive. There is a demand for the association, ”says Junnila, 23, who is studying political science at the University of Tampere.

Junnila believes that his own time is enough for sports, study and organizational activities.

“Combining sports and study depends on the individual. For me, studying is an asset, it gives more than it takes. For me, sports are still number one, to whom everything else is subordinate. ”

He sees the leadership of the new organization as a matter of the heart.

“I felt something had to be done about it. In terms of time, the presidency of the association is not a burden. I am interested in social influence. I want to take this forward, but I am primarily a high jumper. ”

Junnilan his own race season looms close as he competes on Friday in Karlsruhe, Germany. The hall season is set to culminate in the World Cup in March in Belgrade.

In the summer, the program will feature two championships, the World Championships in Eugene in July and the European Championships in August in Munich.

In March, Junnila jumped the Finnish record 196 cents in the hall. For the summer 2022 standings, he crossed the height too early, meaning it is not eligible for the show, even though the World Championships limit is 196 cents and the European Championships limit is 195 cents.

Last summer, Junnila changed coach on the eve of the Tokyo Olympics. Seven years of cooperation Jouko Kilven with ended and took charge of coaching Tuomas Sallinen.

“There are new stimuli for coaching. I enjoy training and it is nice to develop. Tuomas is a very different coach than Jouko. All training is aimed at the 2024 Paris Olympics. I feel really confident and calm. ”