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Matti NukkanemBest <flying skier>
Country:
 Finland |
Content:
- Matti Nykänen: The Flying Finn
- Early Life and Passion for Ski Jumping
- A Life of Scandals and Relationships
- The Post-Ski Jumping Era
Matti Nykänen: The Flying Finn
One of Finland's legendary ski jumpers, Matti Nykänen, recently attended a stage of the World Cup near his birthplace in Lahti. However, the 37-year-old Nykänen, who has become a living legend in the sport, did not participate in the competition. For the past ten years, he has only been able to experience flights from the ski jump in his dreams. Instead, Nykänen stood humbly at the base of the 90-meter tower, where other athletes flew off to claim championship prizes, selling t-shirts and baseball caps embroidered with his gold initials "M.N." Throughout his remarkable career, Nykänen has left an indelible mark on not only Finnish sports but also the world of athletics. As the champion of the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo, three-time gold medalist at the 1988 Calgary Games, and multiple-time world champion, his list of achievements is truly envy-inducing. However, alongside his fantastic victories were scandals, women, marriages, divorces, and alcohol.
Early Life and Passion for Ski Jumping
Nykänen grew up in a village almost surrounded by forests, located in the geographical center of Finland. When he was twelve years old, his parents gave him a pair of skis. Despite being the smallest in his class, Nykänen possessed boundless energy that he needed to unleash. Thus, ski jumping became the most important aspect of his life. Education, profession, and future prospects did not exist for him. From morning till night, the young boy tirelessly climbed up the hill and jumped, jumped, jumped. This blond, fearless little devil wanted to jump better, more beautifully, and farther than anyone else. In 1981, at the age of 19, Nykänen became the world champion among youth athletes, and the following year, he clinched the title among adults on the 90-meter ski jump. Despite his youthful appearance, Nykänen flew like a kamikaze. However, the weight of his initial victories proved too heavy. The village boy found himself in the Finnish national team, where military discipline reigned. Nykänen felt like a bull in a china shop. He shrugged off restrictions, reprimands, and admonitions. The 19-year-old wanted to go to dances, so he did. He wanted to prove himself as a man, so he drank. He believed that being first was the most important thing. As for what he did when he took off his ski boots, it was his personal problem. And so it went for his entire ten-year sports career. Even today, Nykänen cannot understand why there is so much interest in his life, why the media made a fuss about every glass of beer he drank. "I had to choose: be a good boy with no victories or be a scandalous champion," he said.
A Life of Scandals and Relationships
Where there is fame, there are women. And there he was, a blond with blue angelic eyes, a trusting and uncontrollable 19-year-old champion whose jumps took your breath away. Tiine Hassinen was eighteen years old when she met Matti at a dance in the summer of 1986. It was love at first sight. He was already an Olympic champion, and she had just finished school to become a model. Their romance developed rapidly. A month later, they exchanged rings. Matti took his bride to Germany, where another stage of the World Cup was taking place. Unable to control the couple's wild behavior, the team management sent them both home. In November, Matti and Tiine secretly got married. In January, on the eve of the World Championships, Finland's golden hope embarked on a honeymoon trip to Sri Lanka. Would he return on time? Would he lose his form? Would he live in the team camp or with Tiine? Matti remained unpredictable. Nevertheless, he won the "gold" for Finland. At the end of the year, the couple welcomed their son, Sami. In 1988, Nykänen achieved a victory at the Winter Olympics in Calgary, winning three gold medals—an accomplishment that no one else has ever matched. The press went wild. Tiine took their child and went to her parents. Since then, Matti has never seen his son.
But Finland, proud of its champion, had little time to mourn. Nykänen was carried on the shoulders of his fans to a house that his fellow countrymen in Jyväskylä had given him. Soon after, a beautiful blonde named Pia Himminen entered the picture—a model once again. In 1989, Nykänen arrived at the World Championships in Lahti with her. Alcohol and passion overflowed. And what happened? Another "gold"! A few months later, they got married. The anticipation was restless. Finns speculated whether it would happen or not. Only when the couple appeared at the church did everyone breathe a sigh of relief. The wedding was broadcast on national television. The bride was stunningly beautiful, with the only flaw being a bruise under her eye. People wondered if she stumbled at her bachelorette party or if Matti had gotten carried away. Shortly after their honeymoon, Pia returned alone. For a whole year, Finns were too absorbed in the dramas of Matti and Pia's married life to watch Mexican soap operas. The couple filed for divorce multiple times, only to withdraw the petitions, setting a kind of national record. Pia loved Matti deeply, but her patience ran out. Finally, in 1991, they separated for good. Pia took their newborn daughter, Evelina, and left the "family" home. Matti never visited his daughter or his ex-wife.
The Post-Ski Jumping Era
That year was when Matti Nykänen lost everything. The end of his dizzying flights from the ski jump had arrived. He suffered from back pain. He eventually drank away his home and had no profession. Around him were questionable companions and "managers" who squandered his money. "For ten years, I jumped from the ski jump. Every year, there were ten or more victories. When did I have time to think about money? The national skiing union was responsible for my contracts," Nykänen bitterly told us (I won't hide the fact that each of us had a glass of Sinebrychoff beer in our hands). But Matti Nykänen demonstrated his fearlessness once again. He took the microphone and stepped onto the stage of a nightclub in Jyväskylä, where the complex of ski jumps bears his name. Finns bought out the entire edition of Nykänen's album in a day. They know how to appreciate bravery.
Shortly after that, the 33-year-old Nykänen met Sari Paanala, the owner of a restaurant in a neighboring village, who would become his third wife. Sari was older, not a beauty, and had children from her first marriage, but she became a lifeline for the champion who had become entangled in life. Nykänen married her and, in order to escape his past, even gave up his famous name, taking his wife's surname.
"I never chose anything in my life. The only thing I chose was ski jumping, and even then, my parents helped me make that choice. Others decided everything else for me. I was like a puppet. Today, thanks to my wife, I feel great," said the radiant Matti Nykänen. But one cannot escape oneself. Matti Paanala, now standing behind the bar counter, still seemed to be the same Matti Nykänen to me. People flocked to this not-so-fashionable restaurant, even by modest Helsinki standards, just to catch a glimpse of the great champion pouring beer. Alcohol, debts, women—once again. And things are far from perfect with Sari. But what still pleases him, like a little boy, is that Matti Nykänen's life is still making headlines. All that remains for this publicly exposed national hero is to expose himself. Finns were speechless when they saw a photo of their beloved figure skater in little white briefs in the newspapers. Matti earned a living by performing striptease in his friend's nightclub...
"Is it fair that our Matti, who gave everything to Finland, was left at the mercy of fate? When he won for ten consecutive years, we celebrated and were proud. It was a triumph for all of Finland. And now he is losing alone," ordinary Finns mused. "Can't our country free him from financial worries? On the other hand, we tried many times. We are not nannies, and he is not disabled."
And so, the national hero, Matti Nykänen, continues his journey through the jungles of life alone. A naive child who still believes in friendship and goodness. Born to fly but never learning how to simply live.
