"Bernie Bolger and his brother didn't really know much about Finska when they spotted an advertisement four years ago for the national championships in Sydney. We told some friends and all decided it would be funny if we signed up, he recalls. We didn't know how serious or legit or what the structure would be of the tournament. The miniature-log-tossing sport, which hails from Finland, is mostly played among friends and family in parks and beaches during summer holidays in Australia."
"But a chance meeting at the tournament with the then head of the sport's international association, Damien Landais, who had recently moved to Australia from France, put them on an unexpected path. We told him how much fun we had, and he was like, Well, if you want to play more tournaments, there's nothing else in Australia, but there is the World Championships overseas and Australia doesn't have a team', he says."
Bernie Bolger and his brother entered the Sydney national Finska championships after spotting an advertisement and signing up for fun with friends. Finska is a Finnish miniature-log-tossing sport commonly played among friends and family at parks and beaches during Australian summer holidays. The national championships felt like a social, fun day rather than an elite competition. A chance meeting with Damien Landais, then head of the sport's international association, led to training and preparation for World Championships abroad. Australia initially had no formal team, so interested players joined by default. Peter Nicholl helped introduce Finska to Australia in 2009 by selling sets and starting championships.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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