Finnish athletes chasing medals – high level at Finnish National Championships

The biggest ITF Taekwon-Do competition in Finland, Finnish National Championships and Helmi Cup, brought together nearly 230 participants.

Great atmosphere brings Taekwon-Do practitioners together

The annual Championships were arranged this time in Sastamala, south-western Finland, on the 3rd and 4th of February, 2018. The event was highly successful, and the organiser received plenty of positive feedback from participants. The competitors, coaches, umpires, volunteers, and of course the audience also played their part in the success of the event.

“We had a great atmosphere in the Championships once again, and the event brought together practitioners of the art from all around Finland. After this weekend one remembers once again why we love this art. Special thanks to the Sastamala Taekwon-Do club for their excellent job at organising the event. Everything went smoothly,” says Milla Kakko, the secretary of Finnish ITF board.

The event lasted two days, during which competitors fought for championship titles both in the colour belts categories of Helmi Cup as well as in the National Championships of black belts. During the weekend we saw a great number of performances in patterns, sparring, special techniques, and power breaking.

Hundreds of competitors and a high level

Last year’s competition, organised in the celebration of the 30th anniversary of Finnish ITF Taekwon-Do Federation, brought a record number of 300 competitors. Despite the fact that this goal was not reached in the National Championships this year, the board of ITF Finland is happy with the achieved number.

“We had 228 athletes this year, and although it is less than last year, we are satisfied. The level was high, and we saw great matches for example in the male open sparring category,” Kakko says.

The Finnish National Championships are the most important Taekwon-Do competition in Finland, and the performances of athletes are also noted for the selection to the national team. Joonas Helassalo, head of the competition committee, is happy with the level of the competitors.

“I’m happy with the level of the juniors in particular, especially in sparring. In patterns we have a very high level particularly in female categories. We saw many excellent performances during the weekend, a lot of improvement and some surprises, too,” says Helassalo.

Text and photos: Inka Khanji
Translation: Maria Rikkonen