Finnish Swimming Federation Announce Team for European SC Championships

The Finnish Swimming Federation has announced a team of 17 swimmers for this year’s European Short Course Championships. The event will be held at the Tollcross International Swimming Centre in Glasgow from December 4th-8th, for what will be the 20th instalment of the competition.

Among the team is Finnish Olympian Jenna Laukkanen, who took home two silver medals in the 50m and 100m breaststroke at the 2017 Short Course Championships in Copenhagen. Laukkanen previously won gold in the same events back in 2015 in Netanya, Israel.

Finland’s relay teams have historically done quite well at this meet, with three podium finishes in the last six championships. A few months after the London 2012 Olympics, the Finnish women’s relay team: consisting of Emiliar Pikkarainen, Lotta Nevalainen, Laura Kurki and Hanna-Maria Seppala won silver in the 4x50m freestyle relay. The mixed relay team also won bronze in the 4x50m freestyle that year, which included Seppala and Kurki again, as well as Andrei Tuomola and Ari-Pekka Liukkonen. 

For team members Tapio Junninen (24) and Olli Kokko (25), this will be their first European Championships. Absent from the list is 2016 Olympian Mimosa Jallow and National Team member Silja Kansakoski, despite both reaching the qualifying standard for the meet. At the same event in 2017, Jallow made it to the finals in the 50m freestyle and 50m backstroke. The complete team list can be found below. 

Women

• Nea-Amanda Heinola, NumKis 
• Ida Hulkko, TaTU
• Veera Kivirinta, OU 
• Laura Lahtinen, HSS
• Jenna Laukkanen, SCV 
• Vilma Ruotsalainen, HSS
• Fanny Teijonsalo, Cetus 
• Lotta Upanne, HSS 

Men

• Anton Herrala, TaTU 
• Tapio Junninen, Vanders 
• Olli Kokko, LaUS 
• Ari-Pekka Liukkonen, Cetus 
• Matti Mattsson, PUS 
• Niko Mäkelä, RiUS 
• Riku Pöytäkivi, HSS 
• Andrei Tuomola, HSS
• Teemu Vuorela, SWIM 

Coaching Staff

• Management Jari Varjonen, Team Leader
• Jere Jännes, Coach
• Eetu Karvonen, Coach
• Toni Piirainen, Coach
• Matti Mäki, Coach
• Aleksi Rajansuo, Coach
• Kati Toivonen, Physiotherapist
• Tuomas Tikkala, Physical Therapist
• Jussi Salminen, Spokesperson