Athletes

Paavo Nurmi

Born in Turku, Finland in 1897, Paavo Nurmi was the 'Flying Finn' who won nine Olympic gold medals and set twenty-two world records, completely dominating middle and long-distance running in the 1920s. A pioneer who practiced scientific pace distribution with a stopwatch in hand, he became a national hero whose achievements helped shape Finland's identity as a newly independent nation.

View this figure's profile