Ville Ritola
Although one of the most consistent athletes of his era, Ville Ritola's (originally Vilho Eino Ritola) fame would never reach the dizzy heights of that enjoyed by his compatriot, the "Flying Finn" Paavo Nurmi, in whose shadow he would remain throughout his career. This had no bearing, however, on Ritola's talent for middle distance running. His five Olympic titles place him just behind Nurmi, Carl Lewis and Ray Ewry in the list of athletes with the most gold medals in the history of the Games. Ritola, the 17th child in a family of 20, emigrated to the United States when he was 17 years old to work as a carpenter. Subsequently, training in New York while working in a hotel, he met compatriot Vaino Noppa, who became his trainer. Ritola made giant strides, even more so with the advice of another Finn who had emigrated to the USA, Hannes Kolehmainen, triple Olympic distance champion in Stockholm in 1912. He would not however compete in the 1920 Olympic Games due to his professional obligations. Ritola prepared for the Paris Games doubly determined. In 1922 he won the the United States cross country championship. In the qualification rounds, he dominated the 5000m and, above all, beat Nurmi's world record in the 10,000m (30:35.4). This record would be beaten again by Ritola, known as the "other flying Finn", during the Paris Games in 1924 (30:23.2), but Nurmi, who did not dispute the event, would soon take his record back in a time of 30:06.2. The 5000m was the scene of the first duel between Ritola and Nurmi. Following a classic sprint, Nurmi won the event with two tenths of a second to spare for his adversary. In the individual cross country event, Nurmi would win again, although both men joined forces to hand their country another gold in the 3000m team event. Thanks to Nurmi and Ritola in particular, Finland finished second in the medals table. In Amsterdam four years later, the duel between the two men would keep the public on tenterhooks. Nurmi beat his rival in the 10,000m although Ritola responded with his own victory in the 5000m.
