Toni Piispanen

Started: He took up wheelchair rugby two years after he acquired his impairment. In 2010 he began wheelchair racing. (Athlete, 20 Aug 2018, 30 Aug 2012) Reason: "I have always been quick and I wanted a challenge besides wheelchair rugby." (Athlete, 30 Aug 2012) Ambition: To win medals at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. (paralympia.fi, 03 Dec 2023) Milestones: At the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo he became the first Finnish athlete from any sport to win more than one medal at a single edition of the Games since 2008. (SportsDeskOnline, 21 Jul 2024) Awards: He was named Athlete of the Year for 2021 in the athletics category by the Finnish Sports Journalists Association. (yleisurheilu.fi, 10 Jan 2022) He was named Athlete of the Year for 2021 by the Finnish Sports Association. (yleisurheilu.fi, 10 Jan 2022, 22 Dec 2021) In 2012, 2015, 2018 and 2021 he was named Para Athlete of the Year by the Espoon Tapiot athletics club in Finland. (espoontapiot.fi, 16 Dec 2021, 15 Nov 2015; Facebook page, 16 Dec 2018) In 2013 and 2020 he was named Helsinki Athlete of the Year in Finland. (vuosaarilehti.fi, 16 Jun 2020) In 2019 he was named Athlete of the Year and Para Athlete of the Year by the Finnish Amateur Athletic Association [SUL]. (yle.fi, 12 Dec 2019; yleisurheilu.fi, 12 Dec 2019) He received the Para Athlete of the Year award at the 2013 Finnish Sports Gala. (herbalifespotlight.com, 2014) Additional Info: TECHNICAL ADJUSTMENTS In response to placing second in the T51 100m at the 2018 European Championships in Berlin, Germany, in 2019 he made a number of technical adjustments to his racing wheelchair. In order to identify which adjustments he needed to make, he made use of an acceleration measurement device called an accelerometer. "We started by watching the videos, and I did extensive analyses with my team on what needed to be developed. We set out to improve my first 10 metres. We looked at how my chair behaved. The data went directly to the computer, and from there the sensors showed counter-force spikes. We started adjusting the chair to lower those counter-force spikes, and my times immediately improved. We probably made a hundred different changes to my chair and tested the effects of the different adjustments." He went on to win gold in the T51 100m at the 2019 World Championships in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. (yle.fi, 12 Dec 2019; kaleva.fi, 07 Nov 2019; olympiakomitea.fi, 01 Oct 2019) OCCUPATION In 2024 he was appointed as secretary general of the National Sports Council in Finland. He has also worked as a planner for the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture. (liikuntaneuvosto.fi, 27 Mar 2024; Facebook profile, 09 Feb 2024; lts.fi, 14 Dec 2023; paralympiarahasto.fi, 14 Jul 2022; yle.fi, 12 Dec 2019)