Athletics | Direct talk about the army from a Finnish javelin thrower

Vaasa

Friday was not a spear promise Move to Elomaa20, day.

49.68 meters remained the best quote of the athlete at the Helsinki Games, which has no relevance to Saturday’s javelin final. Just over a month ago, the javelin flew to 54.02 meters in Vantaa’s Myyrmäki. The result was a new Finnish record for female soldiers.

What are you talking about?

“There were difficulties with the technology. The spear left the side, which is a problem for me in previous seasons as well. It was repaired during the winter, but now it has started to come back again”, Elomaa said after the qualifying round.

Another thing that got in the way in Friday’s qualifying was the heat. The mercury rose to almost 30 degrees in Kaarlenkenta on Friday.

“There should be a little more shade in this kind of weather at the throwing site as well,” commented Elomaa.

Despite the difficult qualifying competition, the young woman believed that the technical problem that has emerged recently can be fixed with two things: time and training.

Workout have gone well, even though Elomaa started his service in Santahamina in October at the Kaarti Jääkärirykment’s sports school.

“It has always been clear to me that I want to join the army. I heard about the sports school a couple of years ago, and I thought this would be a good thing. You could combine two things: sports and conscript service”, Elomaa explained the reasons for applying for the service.

Now the service is halfway through, and Elomaa has enjoyed being in the gray of the army. For him, combining the military and sports has gone perfectly.

Elomaa says that he mainly trains at a training center near Santahamina.

The situation has not been the same for all athletes. Skier Alexander Ståhlberg criticized conscript service three years ago in very harsh terms. He chose civil service because he believed that the army would hinder his development.

Because Elomaa had been planning to join the army for years, not many things have come across in Santahamina that would have surprised a young woman from Sastama.

“I have experienced all new learning as interesting and fun.”

So what are the things that have surprised Elomaa?

“Of course, the accuracy and punctuality of the schedules. Of course, I could have expected it, but it still surprised me in everyday life.”

“Then the guerrilla food – that is, what we have with us in the forest – is absolutely terrible,” Elomaa said with a laugh.

A solution has been found for this too. Elomaa might pick up noodles or, for example, canned tuna from the store before the forest camps.

“It’s also worth bringing your own spices!”

Elomaa has noticed that it is often possible to choose which muons to pack for camp. So he brings along his own favorites.

Because everything has gone well until now, Elomaa believes that the military service will go smoothly until the end without any problems. The reserve is waiting in October.

Before that, Elomaa has set the goal of the SC championships of his own age group and, of course, to get the technology back on track.

Women’s the javelin medals will be fought at the Kaleva Games on Saturday from 17:15. One of the early favorites of the competition is Anni-Linnea Alanen.