{"id":3391,"date":"2025-06-15T13:05:19","date_gmt":"2025-06-15T10:05:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jukola.com\/2025\/?p=3391"},"modified":"2025-07-02T21:18:51","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T18:18:51","slug":"the-jukola-flag-heads-to-kotka-traditions-continued-in-the-mens-relay-winners-celebrat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jukola.com\/2025\/en\/the-jukola-flag-heads-to-kotka-traditions-continued-in-the-mens-relay-winners-celebrat\/","title":{"rendered":"The Jukola Flag Heads to Kotka \u2013 Traditions Continued in the Men\u2019s Relay Winners\u2019 Celebrat"},"content":{"rendered":"

The crowd, happily exhausted after experiencing the Jukola night, gathered to watch the award ceremony as the top teams in the men\u2019s relay took the stage.<\/span><\/p>\n

The brightest spotlight was on the winning team, Stora Tuna OK (<\/span>Olle Kalered, Joakim Svensk, Jesper Svensk, Ville Johansson, Henrik Johannesson, Viktor Svensk, and Emil Svensk<\/b>), joined by NTNUI and, to the delight of Finnish fans, Helsingin Suunnistajat, who secured a spot in the top three.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Coach of the Year awards from the Finnish Orienteering Coaches Association also went to Helsinki. The recipients were HS men’s coaches Henrik Tala<\/strong> and Atte Lahtinen.\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The awards were presented by <\/span>Juhani Sihvonen<\/b> from Kaukamets\u00e4l\u00e4iset Association, <\/span>Timo Ritakallio<\/b>, Chair of the Finnish Orienteering Federation, <\/span>Juho<\/b> and <\/span>Markus<\/b> Suutarinen<\/b> representing main partner SBS Betoni,\u00a0 <\/span>Janne Kinnunen<\/b>, Mayor of Mikkeli,\u00a0<\/span>and on behalf of the Finnish Orienteering Coaches Association, Chairman Pekka V\u00e4is\u00e4nen<\/strong> and Secretary Maritta Nurmi.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The ceremony also included the traditional handover of the Jukola flag to the next host city. <\/span>Juho Siikil\u00e4<\/b>, Chair of the Mikkeli-Jukola Organizing Committee, wished the Kotka-Jukola team success and shared his reflections after a long journey:<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span> \u201cMikkeli-Jukola gave us inspiration and an incredible sense of community. But now, it\u2019s time to rest!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The next Jukola will be organized in the terrain of Kymin aerodrome with collaboration between two clubs. The Kotka delegation, who came to receive the flag, brings both experience from organizing major events and fresh enthusiasm.<\/span>
\n<\/span>
\n<\/span>\u201cThis will be our club\u2019s fourth Jukola,\u201d explained <\/span>Arto Tilli<\/b>, Chair of Vehkalahden Veikot. For Kymin Suunnistajat, however, this is their first time taking on the responsibility.<\/span>
\n<\/span> \u201cThis means a lot to us, both for the club\u2019s development and from an orienteering perspective,\u201d added <\/span>Pauli Kainiemi<\/b>, Chair of Kymin Suunnistajat.<\/span><\/p>\n

Tommi Lanki<\/b>, Director of Sports for the City of Kotka, praised the cooperation with the clubs and believes everyone will feel welcome at Kotka-Jukola.<\/span>
\n<\/span>\u201cWe hope visitors to Jukola will also enjoy the many offerings of our coastal city.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Ari Kukkonen<\/b>, Competition Director of Kotka-Jukola, accepted the responsibility with humility and thanked Mikkeli-Jukola for the lessons learned.<\/span>
\n<\/span> \u201cThere\u2019s no turning back now. But we have big dreams, and we\u2019re moving toward them. It\u2019s an honor to create something this large and meaningful.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Text<\/b>: Virva Korpinen<\/span>
\n<\/span>Photo<\/b>: Samu Romo<\/span><\/p>\n

Translation<\/b>: Mariya Loginova<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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