Finn Stand Against Russia Is Typical Of Traditional Attitude Toward Sports

Today, 4,000,000 Finns are daring to resist the demands of the Soviet government representing 170,000,000 Russians. As a result, while charting themselves an extremely perilous course in foreign relations, the Finns have caused the people of the world to gaze with incredulity and curiosity at the one Baltic nation not capitulating to the U. S. S. R.

It has occurred to many sports-lovers that the policies now followed by Finland are exactly what might be expected from the nation known to them through the medium of the playing field. Aside from political, racial, and economic factors explaining the so-called natural Finish antipathy for Russia, persons familiar with Finland's national "personality" declare that her stubborn refusal to accede to Russian demands is entirely in accord with Finnish attitudes in athletics.

Skiing Trains Distance-men

Finns are mainly concerned with marketing timber and with farming; as men of the soil their recreation has been limited to the simple, individualized exercise of track and field. The stoic, hardy peasants are well-adapted to this type of sport; many of them work all day and can train for running only at night. The long northern winters cause would-be runners to take up long-distance skiing for conditioning, a type of training which has produced many a tireless distance runner.

It is related that the great Paavo Nurmi, winner of six individual and three team gold medals in the Olympics, used to work out by running along next to freight trains passing near his home; with this pacing he evolved his famous loping style.

Have Won 69 Gold Medals

In competition the men of Finland are noted for the intensity of their efforts--plugging, determined efforts rather than competition of the flash-in-the-pan sort. They are characterized as patriotically inspired to victory but on the other hand are reputed to be hard-headed, reluctant losers.

Although Finns have always assumed the tortoise's role in the tortoise vs. hare battles of Olympic competition, they have enjoyed exceptional success in the international games, having won 69 gold medals since 1906, in addition to 57 silver and 58 bronze awards. Of the gold laurels, 37 were gained in track and field events, 21 in wrestling, and the remainder in winter sports.

Play Own Type of Baseball

The Finns readily agree that their average athlete is neither mentally nor physically equipped for sprint or team sports. However, a good deal of soccer is played with moderate success, basketball has been introduced by touring American teams, and a Finnish variation of baseball is played largely in the country districts by 40,000 players in 600 clubs. But Finns regard track as their national sport even more fanatically than do Americans baseball or Englishmen cricket.

If a national temperament is reflected in part by the people's recreational abilities, then Finland's dogged tradition of excellence in sports is likely to stand her in good stead when some of the 3,500,000 Russians in Leningrad pour across the border. In any case it will be Goliath against a David who has kept in training for centuries.