50 Years Ago: Finland pulled away

The traditional Finland-Sweden athletics rivalry still drew a full stadium on both days, but little on the field seemed to excite anyone beyond first-time spectators. The reason, the article said, was clear: Finland was too strong.

Sweden held a three-point lead in the men’s match after the opening day. The second day’s events, however, had already pointed to a decisive Finnish victory. Finland built a 36-point win in the men’s competition, while the women won by 25 points and the under-19 boys by 15. The under-19 girls suffered Finland’s only defeat, losing by 28 points.

In cool but sunny Sunday weather, pole vaulter Antti Kalliomäki cleared 5.40 metres, while Markku Tuokko threw the discus 64.14 metres. These were the strongest results of the day.

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Finland is too strong.

Foreign Minister Kalevi Sorsa also addressed public discussion of the treaty of friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance between Finland and the Soviet Union. Speaking at a 30th-anniversary celebration of a local Finland-Soviet Union Society branch in Nurmes, Sorsa said the two countries had no differences over the treaty’s interpretation. The Finnish government, he said, remained fully convinced that their shared understanding had not changed.

Sorsa rejected suggestions that the Soviet position had shifted substantially. He pointed to the shared interpretation recorded in a joint statement marking the treaty’s 25th anniversary in 1973. In his view, the 1948 treaty remained the cornerstone of Finnish-Soviet relations, and the cooperation built on it showed that states with different social systems could work together through trust and mutual benefit.

Autumn, meanwhile, was running about two weeks late. Lauri Ikkala, head gardener at the University of Helsinki’s Department of Botany, attributed the delay to unusually vigorous growth in late summer. Leaves had not yet begun to turn properly except in parts of southwestern Finland, where August drought had caused yellowing. Ikkala warned that the change could still come suddenly.

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The Finnish government is fully convinced that the shared understanding between Finland and the Soviet Union of the treaty that forms the basis of our relations has remained unchanged.