Finland as a small sports nation: socio-historical perspectives on the development of national sport policy

Abstract

Elite sports are an important part of most nations’ culture and identity and international success in sport is highly valued. However, the increasingly important cultural, economic and political significance of sport has effectively created the equivalent of a global sporting arms race. This means challenges especially for the small nations who may have both limited populations and resources.

The aim of this essay is to analyse and understand the role of elite sports in one small nation – Finland. By almost any measure Finland has been a successful sporting nation. The nation’s Olympic success was exceptionally high until the middle of the last century but success has been more difficult to achieve in recent times. This article examines the changes in Finnish sporting success and policy development in relation to the three phases of international sport: amateurism, totalisation and professionalism. During the golden and largely amateur era of Finnish sport, the main motivations for success were founded in national identity, hard work and ‘sisu’. However, following this amateur era and facing increasing competition, there was a need for new structures, policies and resources. It was clear that a small country like Finland had to redefine international sport success and hence the emergence of totalisation followed by professionalism. However, these phases are challenging for nations with small markets and for sport systems that operate democratically and are dependent on voluntary civil activity. How can and should Finland adapt its structures, strategies and policies to compete in the new global arena?

Keywords:

• small country
• elite sports
• success
• professionalism

Notes

1. In this article, Finland is defined as a small country on the basis of its population. Geographically (338,400 km²), Finland is the seventh largest country in Europe, but the number of inhabitants (5.4 million) makes Finland the most scarcely populated country in Europe (16 inhabitants/km²).

2. The number of Finnish medals in Summer Olympics/(n = Finnish population/n = the population size of all the medal nations).