The head coach of Finland’s snowboarders, Antti Koskinen, became a social media sensation this week when he was seen knitting at the top of the run in Pyeongchang during the Winter Olympics.
But this is not the first time that Finnish Olympians have got their knitting needles out in competition. Koskinen caused a similar stir in 2014 at Sochi.
The Finnish coach is KNITTING at the top of the slopestyle course. Someone please find out what this man is making!!!#PyongChang2018 #snowboard pic.twitter.com/Nr87YBJ2lf
— Shelby-Jai Flick (@ShelbyJaiFlick) February 10, 2018
In 2014, the team said they were working together to knit a scarf to hand over to Finland’s summer Olympic team for 2016 summer games in Rio. Not that it’s entirely clear why you would have needed a scarf in Brazil.
This time there’s a very different cause the team are knitting for – a blanket for the Finnish president’s child.
We are #knitting again 😀 In Sochi we made a huge scarf, this time we are knitting a blanket for our presidential couple’s newborn son. 💙🇫🇮#olympicteamfi #knittingteamfi #pyeongchang2018 #olympics #olympialaiset #pyeongchangfi pic.twitter.com/mwKLgh1h2j
— Olympic Team Finland (@OlympicTeamFI) February 12, 2018
President Sauli Niinisto’s wife Jenni Haukio gave birth to the couple’s first child on 2 February.
“Everyone is knitting a little square, and then we will join them together” explained Koskinen. The coach said that around half of the 102-strong Finnish team were knitting at these Games.
He also said that the habit also helps him during competitions. “It has become something of a hobby for me. I mean I do it every four years … it is a nice, Finnish thing … it means no unnecessary chit-chat is needed.”
One of Finland’s snowboarders, Enni Rukajärvi, took enough of a break from the knitting to win the bronze medal in the slopestyle competition in Pyeongchang.
