Ice hockey | Noora Räty tells how going through men’s and women’s dressing rooms differs

Ice Hockey goalkeeper Nora Räty grew up in Olari, Espoo. It was a short distance from his home to the nearest playground, which was a mini bowl built in the Salline family’s backyard.

“They lived in Friisila, and I could get there by bike through the forest in ten minutes.”

Tom and Jere Sallinen father moistened the platform in autumn to make it slippery and froze it in winter to make it suitable for skating. Thanks to the lighting, the children could play late into the evening.

“Long evenings were spent there”, Räty recalls wistfully.

The group born in 1989 played in Jäähonka Flyers, and the hustle and bustle started when Noora was 5 years old. Almost ten of these backyard tinkerers have played professionally at some point, so it was a rare talent of children.

Räty was the only girl in the group both in yard games and in the ice rink.

“I had one friend who played on the boys’ team in Gran.”

Otherwise, running into girls was rare.

“In C-juniors, we played with EPS against IHK and I wondered “hey”, there are girls there.”

How did the guys react? Ice hockey had traditionally been a “boys thing”.

“My classmates and friends accepted my hobby and didn’t wonder about it, even though I wasn’t interested in playing with them with barbies or Spice Girls cards,” says Räty.

Strangers, on the other hand, wondered why Noora was playing hockey.

Fresh The Lion Queen– in the book, Räty tells more about his growing up years.

“It wasn’t that I was fundamentally opposed to girlhood and its most common manifestations. For me, all the other girls in the world were completely free to wear skirts, admire the Spice Girls and curl their hair. My problem was that I just wanted to play sports and I always got frustrated when I wasn’t allowed to do that.”

Especially in elementary school, Räty says he hung out with boys more than girls. According to him, in the 1990s, things were thought of as girls’ or boys’ things.

Today, the binary definition of gender is no longer fashionable.

“Society has developed, and today the border is much more blurred.”

When she was young, Räty was upset when a very cramped compartment was reserved for girls.

“Especially when I was a teenager, I thought that if the joke was a boy, there would be better opportunities in hockey.”

At that point, sports were everything for the girl.

“I had a bold dream that I would become the first female goaltender in the NHL.”

Rädy had a Canadian who played in men’s teams Manon Rhéaume collector’s card, but the biggest models were male veskars.

“Ed Belfour, Curtis Joseph and Dominik Hasek“, Räty lists.

However, the biggest idol was found in the home elves.

“I was total Jarmo Myllys -fanatic.”

As a teenager there was a crisis ahead, when the only girl had to be further away in the team’s everyday life.

“I was moved to my own dressing room, and I no longer felt as strongly a part of the community,” says Räty.

In adult games, Räty has been able to observe the state of the booths in many clubs. According to him, locker room culture is surprisingly similar in men’s and women’s teams.

“It’s a pretty open culture there, and adapting has been up to me.”

Men’s hockey is considered very heteronormative and homophobic. The women’s side is known to have a more permissive atmosphere. According to Rädy, he was not surprised when he entered the women’s booth, because he says he grew up in a permissive culture at a young age.

“In the women’s booth, it didn’t matter if someone was straight or non-straight. You could joke about it within the limits of good taste, and it didn’t become a number.”

In the men’s teams, there was more talk about girlfriends and overnight trips.

“Sexual orientation was not a topic there,” says Räty.

Based on Räty’s experiences, homosexuality is still taboo in the booths of men’s teams. In the same spirit, the topic was recently described by a former Blues player Janne Puhakka in his book Out of the booth.

How about has Räty ever had to think about his own femininity?

“I’m a pretty carefree person, and appearance has never been an important thing.”

A goalkeeper doesn’t mind walking down the street looking casual.

“When I go to Sibelius park with the dogs in the morning in a tank top and a beanie, passers-by might think I’m a 16-year-old boy,” Räty laughs.

She says she dresses according to her mood.

“The most important thing is to feel comfortable.”

When necessary, she can make herself the queen of the evening, as in December 2018, when Räty was her husband by Karel Popper with as a guest at Linna’s party.

“For a change, it’s nice to dress up and go to dinner in high heels, but being focused on appearance has never been a big thing for me.”

Popper he met while studying at the University of Minnesota. Both of them blocked pucks, which made it easier for them to start a joint fight.

“Similarity attracted, and a certain type of character perhaps brought them together”, Räty ponders and lightens up.

“All goalkeepers must have a brain cell on their side.”

The two share a house in Minneapolis, but spend only a few months a year, from May to August, there.

“It’s a pretty tough relationship when we usually only have three or four months of living together.”

At other times, both play or coach on their own. Popper is currently the goalkeeper coach of Chicago Steel, who play in the USHL, and Räty recently signed a player contract with HPK.

“We have the expenses of four properties, but that’s our choice right now.”

According to American practice, Räty would be a housewife who would move after her husband’s work.

“It really doesn’t suit me, and Karel doesn’t require it. We don’t want to be an obstacle to each other’s careers.”

A rag believes that the time will come when they will have time to live together at the same address.

At that point, the Finnish lady may also show her feelings more openly than before.

“I’ve never been a crybaby or a sensitive person.”

Of course, there is softness under the hard shell.

“I’m really lazy these days,” Räty teases.

The ability to empathize has developed over the years, but emotionality still has its limits.

“I still don’t get sensitive easily, for example, during the final scenes of the films themselves.”

If when you were younger, the extreme end of the emotional scale was the loss experienced in the rink, now the emotions are brought to the surface by the beloved dogs. Rädy has two of them. He rescued the other as a puppy from China to Finland.

While talking about dogs, Räty glances at his phone, which vibrates when his life partner calls. A fine tremor can also be seen on Rädy’s face.

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