A Reluctant Hero: Hannes Kolehmainen and the Politics of Sporting Fame in Finland

2012

A multiple Olympic champion and pioneer of long-distance running in Finland, Hannes Kolehmainen migrated to the United States after having triumphed at the 1912 Stockholm games. In spite of his working-class credentials that had led to tension prior to Stockhom, the Finnish bourgeois sport authorities adopted him as their hero and literally bought him back from America in the 1920s, soon after Finland had gained independence. Subsequently, a number of prominent observers and scholars have claimed that Kolehmainen's running prowess not only brought the Finnish people together but also contributed to Finland's quest for independence. This essay takes a critical look at the hegemonic understan…