Pro Urheilu awards to Kyra Kyrklund, Tapio Sipilä, Jouni Parkkali and Sirpa Vesanen

This year, the Pro Urheilu awards were presented to Kyra Kyrklund (dressage), Tapio Sipilä (wrestling), Jouni Parkkali (volley ball) and Sirpa Vesanen (née Ylönen, shooting).

The Pro Urheilu award was introduced in 2000 and it is presented to a Finnish athlete in recognition of an outstanding sport career or achievement in sports. Each award is worth EUR 20,000 – the funds are collected from Veikkaus, the national lottery company.

A Pro Urheilu medal, designed by sculptor Nora Tapper, was granted to former sports reporter Pekka Aaltonen, football coach Martti Kuusela, cross-country coach Immo Kuutsa, International Paralympic Committee?s Classifier Paula Leppänen and sports writer Markku Siukonen.