Finland national bandy team
The Finnish national bandy team (Finnish: Suomen jääpallomaajoukkue, Swedish: Finlands herrlandslag i bandy) has taken part in all the Bandy World Championships for men since the competition was launched for the first time in 1957. Finland won the championship title in 2004.[1][2] They have always finished in the top four, and have won 28 medals in 36 championships.
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| Association | Finland's Bandy Association (Suomen Jääpalloliitto) (Finlands Bandyförbund) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Head coach |  | ||
| Team colors | |||
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| First international | |||
Finland   Helsinki, Grand Duchy of Finland, Russian Empire 11 March 1907 | |||
| Biggest win | |||
Finland  Haparanda, 25 March 2001 | |||
| Biggest defeat | |||
| Sweden Trollhättan, 22 November 1998 | |||
| Bandy World Championship | |||
| Appearances | 38 (first in 1957) | ||
| Best result |  | ||
The team is controlled by Finland's Bandy Association.
History
Finland was represented by the club Polyteknikkojen Urheiluseura (PUS) in the winter games in Helsinki in 1907, but the team was beaten by a team from Sweden.[3]
The first international bandy game after Finland became independent was held during the 1919 Finnish Winter Games in Helsinki, which were the first international sporting event organized by the recently independent nation.[4] The national team’s roster was dominated by players from Viipurin Sudet and included only three players representing other domestic clubs, Harald Nyström from HIFK, Lars Schybergson from Kiffen, and Niilo Tammisalo from HJK. The national team’s match against the Swedish club IFK Uppsala was held on 23 February at Töölön Pallokenttä before a crowd of 5,000 spectators, including State Regent of Finland C.G.E. Mannerheim.[3] The Finns won the match 4-1 in a victory that was described in the press as “one of the most amazing achievements of Finnish athletes.” [5]
In the 1920s and 1930s, Finland regularly played friendly games against Sweden and against Estonia.
Finland, Norway, and Sweden played bandy at the 1952 Winter Olympics in Oslo. After having seen them there, the Soviet Union invited these three countries to a four nation bandy tournament in 1954. This was the first time a Soviet national bandy team met other national bandy teams. The four countries used somewhat different rules prior to this tournament, but the rules were adjusted to be the same for the future.[6]
The first ever World Championships of bandy were organised in 1957 in association with the 50th anniversary of the Ball Association of Finland, which at the time was the governing body of bandy in Finland. It was played at the Helsinki Olympic Stadium.
Finland's Bandy Association was founded in 1972.[3]
World Championship record
Russian Government Cup
| Games | Finish |
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| 4th place |
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.svg.png){kind=small} | 4th place |
| 4th place |
| 4th place |
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| 4th place |
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| 5th place |
| 5th place |
| 4th place |
| 5th place |
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Current squad
Finnish squad at the 2014 World Championship in Irkutsk, Russia, January 26 – February 2, 2014.[7]
| Pos. | Age | Name | Club |
|---|---|---|---|
| GK | 37 | Timo Oksanen | |
| GK | 30 | Kimmo Kyllönen | |
| DF | 28 | Ilari Moisala | |
| DF | 35 | Pekka Hiltunen | |
| DF | 31 | Antti Ekman | |
| MF | 22 | Samuli Helavuori | |
| MF | 39 | Kimmo Huotelin | |
| MF | 28 | Ville-Veikko Angeria | |
| MF | 34 | Ville Aaltonen | |
| MF | 29 | Juho Liukkonen | |
| MF | 27 | Tomi Hauska | |
| MF | 26 | Anssi Hänninen | |
| MF | 26 | Samuli Koivuniemi | |
| FW | 31 | Mikko Rytkönen | |
| FW | 31 | Tomi Tukiainen | |
| FW | 27 | Mikko Lukkarila | |
| FW | 26 | Markus Kumpuoja | |
| FW | 39 | Sami Laakkonen | |
References
- The entire final
- The decisive goal
- "The Finnish Bandy Federation, in English". Finnish Bandy Federation. Retrieved February 12, 2014.
- Lavikainen, Jouni (2019-01-18). "Suomen talvikisat 1919 – itsenäisen Suomen ensimmäiset suurkilpailut" [Finnish Winter Games 1919 - The First Major Sporting Competition of Independent Finland] (in Finnish). Sports Museum of Finland. Retrieved 2019-08-21.
- Koskinen, Jukka (2019-01-28). "Suomi-Ruotsi -maaotteluita jo 100-vuotta" [One-hundred years of Finland-Sweden matches] (in Finnish). Finnish Bandy Federation. Retrieved 2019-08-21.
- Claes-G Bengtsson (23 November 2007). "Sargens entré förändrade bandyn" (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 18 January 2014. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
- "Tässä Suomen jääpallojoukkue MM-kisoihin" (in Finnish). Yle Urheilu. 16 January 2014. Retrieved 21 January 2014.
External links
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| Women's |
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