There is more to Sweden than Swedish Fish…

By Jessica Bohince

After spending a weekend in Stockholm, Sweden, I can officially say that is doesn’t “suck” to the dismay of my Finnish friends.  A group of around 14 students left Jyväskylä at around 2:30pm.  We took a 4 hour bus ride to Turku which was Finland’s first capital.  Once we arrived in Turku, we boarded the “ferry” that would take us to Stockholm.  The ship was bigger than the one who took to Tallinn and it had great amenities.  There was a casino, dance club, shows, shopping, and a lot of restaurants.  About have the group decided to get something to eat and just play cards for the night.  We played the game “Spoons” which I hadn’t played since elementary school! I had such a great time! I think a lot of people tend to go crazy on cruise ships with partying and drinking.  It was so nice just to relax, talk, and play cards. 

The next morning we arrived in Stockholm and had to disembark the ship by 6:30am!  I can honestly say that all of us dragged ourselves to the bus.  Our trip coordinator, Mina, arranged to have a bus travel with us and our driver was named Ollie.  Ollie picked us up and we headed directly to eat breakfast.  One difference I noticed about breakfast in Finland, Sweden, and Estonia, is they have the “normal” breakfast foods like eggs, bacon, sausage, fruit, cereal, etc., but they also serve lunch meat, cheese, and vegetables.  I don’t think most Americans think of lunch meat, cheese, and vegetables as breakfast, that’s more like lunch to us.

After scarfing down breakfast, we then went on a bus tour of the city.  Mina, who used to be a tour guide, gave us a lot of information about Stockholm as well as Sweden in general.  Along the way, Ollie pulled over so we could get out a take pictures.  I can see why Stockholm is often called “the Venice of the North.”  Once the bus tour was over, Ollie dropped us off by the Opera house.  We had 4 hours to explore the city on our own.  The group of 14 split in smaller groups because we all didn’t want to do the same things.  My group wanted to do some souvenir shopping.  We browsed the different shops and I found a lot of nice things for my family. 

Once we all “shopped till we dropped”, it was time to eat a late lunch.  We made our way to the bazaar.  I don’t know if that’s what they call it in Stockholm, but that’s what it looked like to me.  There were food and shopping vendors.  Brenda and I decided on BBQ, which was really delicious.  I was shocked at how good it was.  I didn’t think the Swedish would be good at BBQ.  It seems to be such an American thing.  Other people in the group got Italian, Thai, and Greek food. We decided to sit outside and enjoy the beautiful weather.  As we were sitting there, I noticed there were a lot of different ethnic groups. I don’t know if they live in Sweden or were just visiting for the weekend like I was.

When lunch was over, we continued to explore the city until it was 4pm.  Ollie and Mina picked us up from the Opera House then we made our way to the hotel.  The hotel was located outside of Stockholm to what felt like to me the suburbs.  The hotel was very nice and our view was amazing.  Most of the group decided to head back to the city for the evening. Brenda, JQ, and I decided to stay around the hotel for the night.  Little did we know we had an unplanned adventure!

Brenda, JQ, and I decided we wanted to get some dinner.  We checked the hotel menu and there wasn’t anything too appealing, plus it was a little pricey.  We first walked to the local grocery store named Willy’s.  They didn’t have any hot food and we didn’t have a microwave so we left there empty handed.  As we were leaving, we spotted a McDonald’s across the street. We figured we could walk down a little further and cut across the street. Boy, were we wrong!  We walked down the street and went passed a football field where there was a game being played. We continued to walk until we were right across from the McDonald’s.  There were was one major problem; there was a free way with cars speeding past between us and dinner.  We asked a man who was walking on the path how to get McDonald’s  he told us we would have to walk all the back until we reached the hotel and then walk over the designated walking bridge to the other side of the street.  At this point, the hotel looked like the size of my fist, so that’s what I didn’t want to hear.  We thanked him and then decided if we wanted McDonald’s or just go back to the hotel and eat.  I said I was going to McDonald’s with or without them.  I wasn’t going to let McDonald’s beat me!

We slowly made our way back to the walking bridge which I might add was 20 steps from our hotel!  After about an hour and a half, we FINALLY made it to McDonald’s and let me tell you that was the best Big Mac I ever ate.  I don’t think I have ever worked that hard for McDonald’s in my life and definitely made my trip to Stockholm memorable!

After dinner we made our way back to the hotel, which only took like 20 minutes, we hung out in our room until we went to bed.  Saturday morning we woke up, had breakfast, and then headed back to Stockholm.  The group I was with stayed together and we decided to go to the Aquarium.  It wasn’t very big compared to other Aquariums I have been to, but it was a great way to spend a few hours.  There was one area that looked like a rainforest.  At one point, a thunderstorm came through with rain.  I have never been to an exhibit where that has happened before and it was pretty cool! I also got to see a Swedish catfish and it was HUGE! Probably the biggest catfish I have seen in person.  Once we were done exploring, we rode around on a boat that takes you to the different islands. It was a great way to get some pictures.  We still had some time left, but not enough to tour anything so he hung out in the park that was next to the Opera House until it was time to meet Mina and Ollie.  The park was beautiful and the weather was again perfect.  At 6pm, the bus picked us up and we headed to the harbor so we could board the ship that would bring us back to Turku.  We stayed on the ship overnight and at 7:35am it was time to disembark and get on the bus for a 4 hour trip back to Jyväskylä.  We arrived back at our flats at around noon and had the rest of the afternoon to ourselves.  It was so nice to be able to relax and have a lazy afternoon!    

The weekend flew by so fast! There is so much to do in Stockholm and a day and half is not enough time to visit everything. I would definitely consider going back to Stockholm in the future, but just don’t tell my Finnish friends!

Salvaging the Ideals of Sport … at least for a day: Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer

By Dr. Nauright

The past couple of weeks have been rife with controversy in sport around the world from revelations about iconic American cyclist Lance Armstrong, to even more evidence of corruption at the highest levels of FIFA and world soccer, to Jim Tressel’s demise at Ohio State University and then some. And while initially we were keeping the blogs of these couple of weeks to the students and their trip, I have felt compelled to discuss a few of these issues along the way.

Today as I write Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer play in the final of the French Open. It is the eighth time they have met in a Grand Slam tennis final. This is twice more than any other pair in history. Although I have had a slight preference for Nadal, it really doesn’t matter to me who wins. Both gentlemen – and I use that in the classic sense of the term – are genuine sportsmen who clearly demonstrate respect and admiration for each other. Between them they have won 26 (one of them will win today) Grand Slam titles There has never been any sandbagging, trash talking or dissing of one by the other. They have wished each other well and have been gracious in both victory and defeat. Any doubters out there only need to watch the trophy ceremonies after the 2007 and 2008 Wimbledon finals, the first won by Federer, the second by Nadal. Each understands the greatness of the other and they show it. Here are two men who have earned $100 million between them in prize money, yet fame and fortune have not corrupted the character of these two giants of tennis who may prove to be the best two players of all-time.

           

Their styles are different, from dress, again watch the walk-on to the court at Wimbledon in 2008, to playing style. Federer is quite, determined, but seems to glide around the court. Nadal grunts, sweats, yells, fist pumps, though none of this is ever aimed directly at the opponent. These two are no John McEnroe versus Jimmy Connors.

            

While the world of sporting ideals appears to be shattered or at the minimum collapsing around us, I hope that sports fans all over the world take time today to watch competition at the highest level achieved with respect, dignity and graciousness. By the time this blog is posted we will know the winner. Perhaps that matters to some beyond the inner circles of the two athletes, however, the real winner today will be sport which has taken such a beating in recent weeks and months due to the greed, hubris and abuse of power especially by those off the courts and fields. I hope everyone takes or was able to take a couple of hours to enjoy what sport should be about. For today at least, sport will be sporting and all that we wish sport would be will be on display, at least for a few short hours…. 

ICE HOCKEY IN SUOMI (FINLAND!), AND HOW WE MET THE NHL's NEWEST SIGNING FROM THE LAND OF THE WORLD CHAMPIONS!

By John Nauright

Finland are the World Champions of ice hockey yet they have fewer registered hockey players than the Province of Alberta in Canada and a lot fewer than the USA or Canada as a whole. They beat their arch-rivals Sweden 6-1 in the final this year to win which made it even sweeter for them. This week we visited the youth hockey club here in Jyvaskyla and the JYP Club, the professional team who plays in the top Finnish League (their local NHL). We learned about how young kids have several pathways to play that allow them to pursue a top level career or just to play for fun from the time they are six or seven years up well into adulthood. Some succeed at the highest levels. When we were at JYP it coincided with the press conference announcing that their star 19 year old defenseman, Sami Vatanen, had agreed to a contract with the Anaheim Ducks in the NHL, becoming the fifth Finnish player to be signed by the team. The students and I met Sami and were able to view his press conference as well as to tour the arena and learn about the operations of one of Finland's leading ice hockey clubs. Sami will play one more season for JYP and then join the Ducks. Keep an eye out for this young player who has already won many awards for excellence in his young career. He is small for a defenseman but he is lightning quick.

We have learned that the Finnish league is a strong one, but that a number of top players go on to play in the KHL (most teams are in Russia) or the NHL. We also learned that the Finnish clubs do better when a player signs with the Russian-dominated KHL than when a player signs with the NHL. JYP is a success story in the Finnish league despite losing a player or two here and there to the larger international leagues. They play in a state-of-the-art small arena by North American standards. It is the smallest in the Finnish League seating nearly 4,700 however there is not a bad seat in the house and everyone feels close to the action. They sell well over 80% of capacity in season tickets in a city of 130,000 which is not too bad at all. Like Canada, Finland's leading sport in ice hockey in terms of attendance, professional organization, and sponsorship income.

The current world champions will co-host the 2012 World Ice Hockey Championships next May playing the opening rounds at home in Helsinki in a group that includes the USA and Canada. It should be an awesome atmosphere and some of our students will be able to be there and work and research on the event in partnership with the Finland School of Sport Business. The Ducks will be opening their regular season in the Hartwall Arena in Helsinki on Friday October 7th against the Buffalo Sabres, just prior to that on the 4th they will play Finnish club Jokerit, the former club of Teemu Selanne. On the 8th the Ducks will play in Stockholm, Sweden against the New York Rangers.

Hockey is becoming more and more of a global sport and Finland is a small but important nation in international ice hockey circles. Some people in the USA may have forgotten that it was Finland that the "Miracle on Ice" team defeated for the gold medal in Lake Placid in 1980 and Finland is always a team to beat in the Olympics and of course in the World Championships. You may not know too much about Finland and hockey unless you follow the NHL or Olympic hockey but their success should come as no surprise once you see how well organized their hockey development programs and clubs are and how they feed both into the professional teams and into opportunities for playing hockey for fun throughout life. Congratulations to Sami Vatanen and to the local clubs here who nurtured his talent.

The Biggest Collision in Wembley As Seen from Estonia

2010-2011 UEFA Champions League: FC Barcelona 3, Manchester United 1

On May 28^th, 2011, there was one of the biggest soccer matches ever in London, England. The final match of the 2010-2011 UEFA Champions League was held in Wembley stadium, London. A total of 76 teams of the 52 European football associations participated in this season of the UEFA champions League. Only FC Barcelona from Spain and Manchester United from England were able to go to final round. The match attracted universal attention because each team has been known as two iconic giants of world soccer. Moreover, each team won the champion title of their national league, which are currently the strongest domestic leagues in the world. FC Barcelona won the champion title of Spanish Première League, and Manchester United won the champion title of English premier league of this season.

            

Unfortunately we did not have tickets to the match, but neither did the hundreds of millions who watched the match in Europe and around the world. The global audience for this game was the second largest in recent history, only surpassed by last year’s World Cup final between Spain and The Netherlands. Like millions of Europeans we gathered wherever we were that day to watch the game in a Super Bowl-like atmosphere though no Super Bowl I have seen seems to have been watched with as much passion or intensity. We were on a side tour to Tallin, Estonia which as you have read is a ferry ride away from southern Finland. When the time came for the match we gathered with hundreds of fans from Estonia and other parts of the world to watch the match – and what a display of soocer brilliance it was, especially from the winning team.

The Argentinian superstar Messi showed why he is the best soccer player in the world. When people talk about the best soccer player of today, Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are always mentioned. It was always a hard to choose one player. However, this year Messi has been showing spectacular moves during the season, and he scored 11 goals just in the UEFA champion’s league matches before the final game. Finally, he scored one more goal during the final game, and he equaled Ruud Van Nistelrooy’s record of 12 goals in a single season. In addition, he selected  “Man of the Match” and won the MVP of the whole season.

FC Barcelona proved they are the current best soccer club team of the world. With new manager Guardiola, FC Barcelona becomes a best current team of the world. They absolutely try not to show themselves on the field. They always work as a team. Especially, the center midfielder Xavi and Iniesta combination conquered the field by passing to each other. The percentage of ball possession of each team in the game was 63% by FC Barcelona and only 37% to Manchester United. In addition, FC Barcelona’s success 662 passes out of 772 attempts (86%), however, Manchester United was only able to make 301 passes out of 419 attempts (72%). All the statistic results showed how well the FC Barcelona’s players controlled the match on the field.

Manchester United couldn’t win the battle of revenge. The two teams met in the 2008-2009 UEFA champions league’s final match. On May 27^th, 2009, Manchester United lost the match 0-2 in Stadio Olimpico, Rome. They had been waiting for two years to have their revenge. They finally got the exact same situation to take their revenge on May 28^th, 2011. Unfortunately, the manager and the players couldn’t do anything to win. Although the 1-1 tied scored by Wayne Rooney of Manchester United in the first half, they lost the match 3-1 because of the two goals by David Villa and L. Messi in second half of the match.

The biggest European soccer match was ended with FC Barcelona raising the Champion’s Trophy. Sir Alex Ferguson, the team manager of Manchester United, admitted the that FC Barcelona was the best team he has ever been matched against. After the match, FC Barcelona’s players rejoiced their victory while raising their champion cup, and we also celebrated their victory in an English pub in Tallinn, Estonia. I don’t understand any Estonian, yet we all understood the magic of the Barcelona team that night and did not need anything but the language of soccer to express our feelings. Of course some people were supporting Manchester United, but even they had to admit that Barcelona were easily the better team and deserved to win.