The stadium sprint did not draw people to the Helsinki Olympic Stadium. According to Jari-Pekka Joup, commercial director of the skiing association, the situation is not as bad as it seems.
22.3. 21:10
“We are we’re a bit brave when we start something like this.”
That’s what a family man said on Wednesday in front of the Helsinki Olympic Stadium, shortly before the start of the much-hyped Stadium Sprint.
To understand the man’s state of mind. In Taka-Töölö, it was raining like a hoe, and the wind was blowing eight meters per second. So it’s not outdoor weather or weather that attracts you to skiing.
Inside the stadium, it became clear that many skiing fans were not as brave as the family man who updated the situation. The curves of the giant stage roared empty, and there were only a few spectators in the stands.
In no time it became clear that the skiing stars, Johannes Hösflot Kläbo and Kerttu Niskanen in the front nose, causing Finns’ socks to spin on their feet.
The atmosphere of the Olympic Stadium did not become intoxicating, even if the sound was a little bit louder during the heats.
The ski association commercial manager Jari-Pekka Joupin according to Stadionsprint, 7,000 admission tickets were sold in advance.
Wednesday’s audience, however, barely reached five thousand, as many canceled their tickets at the last minute due to the train strike. The capacity of the Olympic Stadium is approximately 36,000.
Even though the stands of Stadika were not filled with skiers, the Ski Association does not get caught up in financial pressure, according to Joup. A significant part of the event’s income consists of tickets included in the Ski Association’s sponsorship agreements, as well as hospitality and vip packages.
“The stadium sprint is not an event driven by audience tickets, but this is purely based on sponsorship income. Fortunately, we managed to sell enough partnerships in the fall that the recession that started in January didn’t put us in a huge challenge,” says Jouppi.
Stadium sprint was held last year a month earlier, right after the successful Beijing Olympics. At that time, 10,000 tickets were sold, and around 8,000 people showed up.
Now the event had to be held only in March, because the Salpausselkä World Cup will also be skied later than usual.
Jouppi admits that February would be the right month for Stadionsprint, but this time reality got in the way.
“We strive to make the event as environmentally friendly as possible and we don’t want to fly or think about the athletes for nothing. That’s why this is organized right before the “Salppur” games.”
There were about five thousand spectators.
According to Joupi, the sales of the Helsinki Ski Weeks event complex this year were almost 500,000 thousand euros lower than a year ago. The event was not a positive sign for the Ski Association even in its debut year.
“We don’t have a problem, because the expenses are measured according to sales. Last year, for example, we had a large event square in front of the Olympic Stadium, but now there is none at all. It was a place to save,” says the commercial manager.
In addition to the recession, the decline in sales is explained by the shorter sales period last year, Jouppi says. The commercial team of the skiing association was too busy filing the sponsorship contracts that the national teams sold well.
Jari-Pekka Jouppi started as commercial director of the Ski Association in 2020.
Ski Weeks was presented in 2020, but the first event in 2021 had to be canceled due to corona restrictions. The future is shrouded in darkness, because the concept in its current form is very laborious, and the citizens’ track at the Olympic Stadium, which was open for the whole of March, did not bring anything to the association.
In connection with the first launch, it was announced that the Ski Weeks complex with stadium sprints will become the financial cornerstone of the Ski Association.
“It hasn’t happened yet, but we are going in that direction. For us, this is a bigger event than Ruka’s World Cup or Salpausselkä’s normal World Cup (not this year’s 100th anniversary event),” says Jouppi.
It is not yet certain in what format the Stadium Sprint or Ski Weeks will be organized next year, or if they will be organized at all. According to Joupi, negotiations have already taken place on the matter, and the board of the Ski Federation’s commercial company Nordic Ski Finland would like to continue organizing the event.
The men’s relay team that won the World Championship silver in Planica was awarded before the start of the competition. Of the four, Ristomatti Hakola and Perttu Hyvärinen were there.
The public might be more excited than it is now if the Stadium Sprint was not just an invitational competition but had the status of a World Cup. According to Joup, it is not possible, because the International Skiing Federation Fis demands that the event should be organized 3-4 times before the World Cup issue can be negotiated. Wednesday’s Stadium Sprint was only the second of its kind.
“The biggest advantage of the event was the incredibly positive feedback given by the athletes. The stadium sprint is really well known among skiers, and there is a demand for this kind of concept,” the commercial director points out.
Olympic Stadium sprint, results:
Women: 1) Ane Appelkivst Stenseth Norway 2.37.17, 2) Johanna Hagström Sweden 2.37.42, 3) Jasmi Joensuu Finland 2.37.50, 4) Matilde Myhrvold Norway 2.37.94.
Men: 1) Johannes Hösflot Kläbo Norway 2.16.58, 2) Even Northug Norway 2.17.58, 3) Richard Jouve France 2.18.04, 4) Lucas Chanavat France 2.18.75.
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