First There Was Tahko – And the Spirit
Local Co-operation Grows Strong
First There Was Tahko – And the Spirit
A pioneer of Finnish sport and physical education,
Lauri “Tahko” Pihkala, in his study in the 1970s.
Tahko’s Theses
“We must strive to expand athletic life to larger grounds. We must make sport a part of national education.”
Sport is a tool
- for finding national unity
- for acquiring and securing independence
- for strengthening national defence
- for improving the nation’s physical health
- for raising young people
“Teachers! When you start to lose hope on the boys who seem slow-witted and keen to bully and pester, take them to do sports! Then you will see that their minds improve while they handle a bat.”
Sport teaches the learner
- co-operation and responsibility
- determination and independence
- to be a rational and good citizen
- to be a member of an organized society
“In a nation with one major batting game, the boys will discover joint advantages in the handling of the ball, and learn to negotiate between conflicting interests.”
“A holy national game is presently necessary. We do not seek to conquer other nations; we have our hands full living in this one. In order to remain here, we need a national game, which will consecrate our children for this nation.”
Hannes Lit Up a Spark, Tahko Added Fuel to the Fire
Hannes Kolehmainen “runs Finland on the map” at the Stockholm Olympics.
Jean Bouin is defeated in the finishing stages of the 5000 metre race.
Sport becomes an instrument in striving for independence.
The massive success at the Stockholm Olympics in 1912 swelled a wave of national self-esteem. Having lived under oppression, dreaming of independence, the nation now had hopes for the future. A small gutsy nation could do anything, just like Hannes Kolehmainen in Stockholm.
The Olympic fever determined the fate of batting sports in Finland. How so? There were no ball games at the Olympics, were there? The Olympics are the playground of individual sports and athletics. The answer lies in Tahko Pihkala’s mind. He felt that “the Olympics are an instrument!”
- Sport is an instrument in the efforts towards independence
- The way to independence is through the Olympics
- We must succeed in the Games
- Success requires effective training
- What is the best training method in the world?
- That is batting
- There, you run fast and throw fast
Tahko concluded that the Finnish batting must become more competitive and active like the American baseball. Thus Tahko began his efforts to revive batting. He succeeded in doing so. As a base for the new game, Tahko chose an old folk game, kuningaspallo (“kingball”).
