Knee injury prevents Janne Ahonen from taking part in Olympic team event

Only one medal for Finland so far

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Finland's Olympic ski-jumping team experienced a setback already before Monday’s team competition. Veteran Janne Ahonen, 32, who damaged his knee when he fell during the trial round of Saturday individual large hill event, will be unable to take part in the team effort.
     
”My leg still hurts like hell, there’s no denying it. We have reached the decision that I will not jump”, Ahonen told Helsingin Sanomat.
     Finnish team physician Harri Hakkarainen still had hopes after Saturday’s MRI scan that Ahonen might be able to continue his participation in the Games.
      “For me it was clear more or less from the beginning that with an injured knee one has no business going to the hill, let alone reap any success. Clowning around in the Olympic Games serves no purpose”, Ahonen said.
     
Ahonen, a five-time World Champion, hurt his left knee when he failed the landing of his 128.5-metre jump during the Saturday trial round for the large hill individual event.
      Ahonen, who is one of the most successful ski-jumpers of all time, has never succeeded in securing an Olympic gold medal. With only two team silvers on his Olympic CV, Ahonen decided to take part in the individual large hill in his fifth Olympic Games, but pulled out after the first round.
      “In retrospect I should not have taken part even in the first round”, Ahonen commented.
      “The injury itself is what worries me. I failed a competition but that is normal. It is part of the sport. I just hope the trauma will not affect too many of the remaining competitions this season.”
     
Ahonen’s pain threshold is known to be high, and the native of Hollola does not usually complain about his ailments. In the 2005 World Championships in Oberstdorf Ahonen jumped with a broken rib and won a gold, a silver, and a bronze medal.
      “An injury above the pelvic region causes less trouble. The legs always take the beating, especially in the landing”, Ahonen explained.
      Finland’s head coach Janne Väätäinen has named the quartet Kalle Keituri, Janne Happonen, Matti Hautamäki, and Harri Olli as Finland’s representatives in the team event.
     
The individual large hill competition was a disappointment for Finland. After the opening round Ahonen was in the 16th place but finished eventually 31st.
      After the first round there were some medal hopes with Hautamäki in the third place, but his failed second round effort saw him finish no higher than 26th in the end.
      Happonen, in turn, was disqualified after the first round of jumping over irregularities with the size of his jumping suit. His outfit was found to be too loose by two centimetres around the thighs.
      The best Finn was Olli, who finished 18th.
     
It is fair to say that Finland has underperformed across the board in these Games.
      One can only hope that Peetu Piiroinen’s snowboarding silver medal in the men's halfpipe event will not remain the only medal won from the 2010 Winter Games.
      As for the remaining events, Finland’s most realistic hopes for any additional bling now lie with the men’s ice hockey team, who have already secured a place in the quarter finals, the women’s ice hockey team, who will face Canada in today’s semifinal, cross-country skier Aino-Kaisa Saarinen, a winner of three gold medals at the last World Championships, whose favourite event women's 30km individual classic event will take place on Saturday, and figure-skater Laura Lepistö, who secured a silver medal in the ISU European Figure Skating Championships held in Tallinn last month.
      Last year’s European Champion Lepistö has declared the Olympic Games in Vancouver as her primary goal for this season.
      Lepistö and her teammate Kiira Korpi begin their Olympic stint with ladies’ short programme on Tuesday.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Saarinen’s skis lack speed in women’s sprint event (18.2.2010)
  Trying victory over China puts Finland in semifinals in women’s Olympic ice hockey (17.2.2010)
  Laura Lepistö takes silver in European Figure Skating Championships (25.1.2010)
  Fourth again! Janne Ahonen continues his unlucky streak (15.2.2010)
  Snowboarder Piiroinen wins Finland first medal in Vancouver (18.2.2010)
  Finland produces convincing win over Belarus in Olympic ice hockey opener (18.2.2010)

Links:
  Vancouver 2010

Helsingin Sanomat