Finland at the 2008 Summer Olympics
# Finland at the 2008 Summer Olympics

Finland competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, People's Republic of China. The athletes were named in four selections: first took place on December 19, 2007, 2nd on April 16, 3rd on May 20 and 4th on July 21, 2008.

The goal of the Finnish Olympic team in the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games was three medals with at least one gold medal.

Shooter Juha Hirvi and dressage rider Kyra Kyrklund made Finnish olympic history by participating in their sixth Olympic Games. They shared the record with three winter Olympians: cross-country skiers Marja-Liisa Kirvesniemi and Harri Kirvesniemi and ice hockey player Raimo Helminen.

## Medalists

| Medal | Name | Sport | Event | Date |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Gold | Satu Mäkelä-Nummela | Shooting | Women's trap | August 11 |
| Silver | Minna Nieminen Sanna Stén | Rowing | Women's lightweight double sculls | August 17 |
| Bronze | Henri Häkkinen | Shooting | Men's 10 m air rifle | August 11 |
| Bronze | Tero Pitkämäki | Athletics | Men's javelin throw | August 23 |

### Notes

* Satu Mäkelä-Nummela's victory in women's trap was Finland's first ever gold medal in shotgun events at the Olympic Games. She became the third Finnish female athlete to win gold at the Summer Olympics, after Sylvi Saimo and Heli Rantanen.
* Minna Nieminen's and Sanna Stén's silver medal in lightweight double sculls is Finland's first Olympic medal in rowing since 1984, when Pertti Karppinen won the last of his three consecutive Olympic gold medals.

## Archery

| Athlete | Event | Ranking round | Ranking round | Round of 64 | Round of 32 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Final / BM | Final / BM |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Event | Score | Seed | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Rank |
| Matti Hatava | Men's individual | 619 | 58 | Terry (GBR) W 105–104 | Cheng C S (MAS) L 103–110 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |

## Athletics

### Key

* Note–Ranks given for track events are within the athlete's heat only
* Q = Qualified for the next round
* q = Qualified for the next round as a fastest loser or, in field events, by position without achieving the qualifying target
* NR = National record
* N/A = Round not applicable for the event
* Bye = Athlete not required to compete in round

### Track & road events

| Athlete | Event | Heat | Heat | Quarterfinal | Quarterfinal | Semifinal | Semifinal | Final | Final |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Event | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Result | Rank |
| Janne Holmén | Marathon | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2:14:44 | 19 |
| Visa Hongisto | 200 m | 20.62 | 4 q | 20.76 | 6 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Antti Kempas | 50 km walk | — | — | — | — | — | — | 3:55:19 | 20 |
| Jarkko Kinnunen | 50 km walk | — | — | — | — | — | — | 3:52:25 | 15 |
| Francis Kirwa | Marathon | — | — | — | — | — | — | 2:14:22 | 17 |
| Mikko Lahtio | 800 m | 1:47.20 | 8 | — | — | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |

### Field events

| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Qualification | Final | Final |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Event | Distance | Position | Distance | Position |
| Tommi Evilä | Long jump | 7.88 | =17 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Robert Häggblom | Shot put | NM | — | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Tero Järvenpää | Javelin throw | 82.34 | 4 q | 83.95 | 4 |
| Olli-Pekka Karjalainen | Hammer throw | 77.07 | 8 q | 79.59 | 6 |
| Frantz Kruger | Discus throw | 62.48 | 12 q | 61.98 | 11 |
| Mikko Latvala | Pole vault | 5.45 | =22 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Tero Pitkämäki | Javelin throw | 82.61 | 3 Q | 86.16 | |
| Teemu Wirkkala | Javelin throw | 79.79 | 10 q | 83.46 | 5 |

### Combined events – Decathlon

| Athlete | Event | 100 m | LJ | SP | HJ | 400 m | 110H | DT | PV | JT | 1500 m | Final | Rank |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Mikko Halvari | Result | 11.18 | 6.88 | 13.72 | 1.93 | 50.60 | 16.25 | 47.71 | NM | 55.11 | 5:20.26 | 6486 | 25 |
| Mikko Halvari | Points | 821 | 785 | 711 | 740 | 787 | 705 | 823 | 0 | 665 | 449 | 6486 | 25 |

### Field events

| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Qualification | Final | Final |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Event | Distance | Position | Distance | Position |
| Mikaela Ingberg | Javelin throw | 58.82 | 17 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Merja Korpela | Hammer throw | 66.29 | 30 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Vanessa Vandy | Pole vault | 4.00 | =32 | Did not advance | Did not advance |

### Combined events – Heptathlon

| Athlete | Event | 100H | HJ | SP | 200 m | LJ | JT | 800 m | Final | Rank |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Niina Kelo | Result | 13.95 | 1.65 | 14.82 | 25.90 | 5.76 | 51.48 | 2:20.97 | 5911 | 23* |
| Niina Kelo | Points | 985 | 795 | 849 | 806 | 777 | 889 | 810 | 5911 | 23* |

* The athlete who finished in second place, Lyudmila Blonska of the Ukraine, tested positive for a banned substance. Both the A and the B tests were positive, therefore Blonska was stripped of her silver medal, and Kelo moved up a position.

## Badminton

| Athlete | Event | Round of 64 | Round of 32 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinal | Semifinal | Final / BM | Final / BM |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Event | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Rank |
| Ville Lång | Men's singles | Druzchenko (UKR) W 21–12, 21–19 | Rai (USA) W 21–9, 21–16 | Kuncoro (INA) L 13–21, 18–21 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Anu Nieminen | Women's singles | Bye | Xu Hw (GER) L 17–21, 8–21 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |

## Canoeing

### Sprint

| Athlete | Event | Heats | Heats | Semifinals | Semifinals | Final | Final |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank |
| Mika Hokajärvi Kalle Mikkonen | Men's K-2 500 m | 1:33.785 | 7 QS | 1:34.994 | 8 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Mika Hokajärvi Kalle Mikkonen | Men's K-2 1000 m | 3:23.475 | 6 QS | 3:27.018 | 6 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Anne Rikala | Women's K-1 500 m | 1:54.294 | 7 QS | 1:54.025 | 4 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Jenni Mikkonen Anne Rikala | Women's K-2 500 m | 1:45.735 | 4 QS | 1:44.624 | 2 Q | 1:44.176 | 7 |

Qualification Legend: QS = Qualify to semi-final; QF = Qualify directly to final

## Diving

| Athlete | Events | Preliminaries | Preliminaries | Semifinal | Semifinal | Final | Final |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Events | Points | Rank | Points | Rank | Points | Rank |
| Joona Puhakka | 3 m springboard | 469.45 | 5 Q | 451.95 | 13 | Did not advance | Did not advance |

## Equestrian

### Dressage

| Athlete | Horse | Event | Grand Prix | Grand Prix | Grand Prix Special | Grand Prix Special | Grand Prix Freestyle | Grand Prix Freestyle | Overall | Overall |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Horse | Event | Score | Rank | Score | Rank | Score | Rank | Score | Rank |
| Kyra Kyrklund | Max | Individual | 70.583 | 6 Q | 69.720 | 10 Q | 74.250 | 6 | 71.985 | 8 |

## Judo

| Athlete | Event | Round of 32 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Repechage 1 | Repechage 2 | Repechage 3 | Final / BM | Final / BM |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Event | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Rank |
| Nina Koivumäki | Women's −57 kg | Bye | Xu Y (CHN) L 0000–0020 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Latrous (ALG) W 0001–0000 | Sato (JPN) L 0000–1011 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Johanna Ylinen | Women's −63 kg | Wang C-F (TPE) L 0000–1011 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |

## Rowing

### Women

| Athlete | Event | Heats | Heats | Repechage | Repechage | Semifinals | Semifinals | Final | Final |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank |
| Minna Nieminen Sanna Stén | Lightweight double sculls | 6:56.61 | 4 R | 7:23.80 | 2 SA/B | 7:03.91 | 2 FA | 6:56.03 | |

Qualification Legend: FA=Final A (medal); FB=Final B (non-medal); FC=Final C (non-medal); FD=Final D (non-medal); FE=Final E (non-medal); FF=Final F (non-medal); SA/B=Semifinals A/B; SC/D=Semifinals C/D; SE/F=Semifinals E/F; QF=Quarterfinals; R=Repechage

## Sailing

### Men

| Athlete | Event | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Net points | Final rank |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Event | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | M* | Net points | Final rank |
| Pierre Collura | Laser | 25 | 10 | 18 | 41 | 23 | 25 | 20 | 33 | DNF | CAN | EL | 198 | 30 |
| Heikki Elomaa Niklas Lindgren | 470 | 28 | 22 | 27 | DSQ | 25 | 19 | 14 | 23 | 17 | 21 | EL | 196 | 27 |

### Women

| Athlete | Event | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Net points | Final rank |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Event | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | M* | Net points | Final rank |
| Tuuli Petäjä | RS:X | 14 | 11 | 7 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 12 | 16 | 11 | 14 | EL | 117 | 16 |
| Tuula Tenkanen | Laser Radial | 10 | 16 | 25 | 21 | 17 | 20 | 20 | 9 | 15 | CAN | EL | 128 | 22 |
| Silja Lehtinen Maria Klemetz Livia Väresmaa | Yngling | 6 | 6 | 3 | 8 | 10 | OCS | 15 | 12 | CAN | CAN | EL | 60 | 11 |

### Open

| Athlete | Event | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Race | Net points | Final rank |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Event | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | M* | Net points | Final rank |
| Tapio Nirkko | Finn | 18 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 19 | 22 | 16 | 22 | CAN | CAN | EL | 102 | 18 |

M = Medal race; EL = Eliminated – did not advance into the medal race; CAN = Race cancelled;

## Shooting

### Men

| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Qualification | Final | Final |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Event | Points | Rank | Points | Rank |
| Henri Häkkinen | 10 m air rifle | 598 | 1 Q | 699.4 | |
| Henri Häkkinen | 50 m rifle prone | 586 | 47 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Henri Häkkinen | 50 m rifle 3 positions | 1161 | 28 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Juha Hirvi | 50 m rifle prone | 595 | 5 Q | 698.5 | 7 |
| Juha Hirvi | 50 m rifle 3 positions | 1168 | 12 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Kai Jahnsson | 10 m air pistol | 574 | 30 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Kai Jahnsson | 50 m pistol | 553 | 22 | Did not advance | Did not advance |

### Women

| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Qualification | Final | Final |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Event | Points | Rank | Points | Rank |
| Hanna Etula | 50 m rifle 3 positions | 577 | 24 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Hanna Etula | 10 m air rifle | 394 | 21 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Marjut Heinonen | Skeet | 61 | 17 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Mira Nevansuu | 10 m air pistol | 384 | 8 Q | 480.5 | 7 |
| Satu Mäkelä-Nummela | Trap | 70 | 2 Q | 91 OR | |
| Marjo Yli-Kiikka | 50 m rifle 3 positions | 579 | 14 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Marjo Yli-Kiikka | 10 m air rifle | 389 | 38 | Did not advance | Did not advance |

## Swimming

### Men

| Athlete | Event | Heat | Heat | Semifinal | Semifinal | Final | Final |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank |
| Matti Rajakylä | 50 m freestyle | 22.48 NR | 29 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Matti Rajakylä | 100 m freestyle | 49.91 | 41 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |

### Women

| Athlete | Event | Heat | Heat | Semifinal | Semifinal | Final | Final |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Event | Time | Rank | Time | Rank | Time | Rank |
| Noora Laukkanen | 200 m breaststroke | 2:38.97 | 39 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Eva Lehtonen | 400 m freestyle | 4:20.07 | 35 | — | — | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Eva Lehtonen | 800 m freestyle | 8:53.50 | 33 | — | — | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Emilia Pikkarainen | 100 m butterfly | 1:02.31 | 46 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Hanna-Maria Seppälä | 50 m freestyle | 25.06 | 15 Q | 25.19 | 16 | Did not advance | Did not advance |
| Hanna-Maria Seppälä | 100 m freestyle | 53.60 NR | 1 Q | 53.84 | =3 Q | 53.97 | 4 |
| Hanna-Maria Seppälä | 100 m backstroke | 1:02.39 | 30 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |

## Tennis

### Men

| Athlete | Event | Round of 64 | Round of 32 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Final / BM | Final / BM |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Event | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Opposition Score | Rank |
| Jarkko Nieminen | Men's singles | Johansson (SWE) L 6–4, 4–6, 4–6 | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance |

## Weightlifting

| Athlete | Event | Snatch | Snatch | Clean & Jerk | Clean & Jerk | Total | Rank |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Event | Result | Rank | Result | Rank | Total | Rank |
| Antti Everi | Men's +105 kg | 171 | 10 | 195 | 11 | 366 | 11 |

## Wrestling

Key:

* VT - Victory by Fall.
* PP - Decision by Points - the loser with technical points.
* PO - Decision by Points - the loser without technical points.

### Men's Greco-Roman

| Athlete | Event | Qualification | Round of 16 | Quarterfinal | Semifinal | Repechage 1 | Repechage 2 | Final / BM | Final / BM |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Athlete | Event | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Opposition Result | Rank |
| Jarkko Ala-Huikku | −60 kg | Bye | Tyumenbayev (KGZ) L 1–3 $^{PP}$ | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | Did not advance | 18 |
