The road to somewhere

Today is "someday" and it feels surreal.

Last time a Finnish athlete won an individual competition in nordic combined was 15 years ago. Since then I've been waiting and hoping for this day to come and even after everything, every setback, every career end, I've believed that someday we will stand on top again.

There has been some dark periods during these last fifteen years. Days and months and years when the victory was not possible. When our athletes were not good enough. When everyone was talking about the crisis of our ski jumping team while the crisis in nordic combined was even bigger. I'd say there has been hopeless times but that would be a lie because I have always always always said and believed that one day the victory would be ours again. That one day all this waiting and hoping and believing would pay off. Today is that one day.

I've always had hope because that's the only thing that was left when the years were dark and there was nothing but setbacks and disappointments and career ends for a long time. There has been good times during those 15 years too. Oh so good times and good moments but also more bitter setbacks and bad luck. Nevertheless I have kept on dreaming of brighter future, the day when it would all just click.

Today is that day and I'm crying. I don't even have words for how much this means. It's all just perfect. So deserved after everything Ilkka has been through.