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Jolly Dragon
Australian Rules Fotball
Rugby
Cricket
American
Football
Borgå
Akilles - Porvoon Akilles Sports Club
Sports
Facilities (Helsinki / Turku)
Bicycle
Repairs & Sales
More
Sports Links
Cricket, rugby and American football
in Finland?? It's true! You're bound to run into a bunch
of expats if you join or go and watch any of the teams
mentioned on this page. And surely there are many sports/clubs
yet to add, so if you know of any please tell
me!
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Jolly Dragon
Jolly Dragon is a rapidly growing Helsinki-based group which arranges a wide variety of sports and social events for internationals and professionals - about 50 sports in all!. The group derives its name from Chinese culture, and apart from being 'serious about fun', includes 'keeping your body fit, your mind sharp and your spirit positive' among its principles.
Membership to Jolly Dragon is free. You can join by e-mailing captain@jollydragon.net or by giving your email address to any existing member at a Jolly Dragon activity. A complete list of events and activities is available at the Jolly Dragon web site (in English).
Go to Jolly Dragon: http://www.jollydragon.net
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The Finnish Lions Australian Football Club
Text: Julian Clark
 The Finnish Lions are the newest "Aussie Rules" Football Club in Scandinavia. We are constantly growing our player base and looking to develop a local league so that we can play each other at home and be able to introduce more and more Finns to this great game. Our ultimate aim is a thriving domestic league with a fully localised Finnish Lions national team taking on other countries annually in major tournaments.
'Practice': We are currently meeting at 14:00 on Saturday afternoons for an informal kick-to-kick in the area between Helsinki Rail Station and the Casino - which quickly degenerates into match strategy discussions at our well lubricated clubrooms just around the corner.
Contact:: Julian Clark
Phone: +358 5048 63809
E-mail:
*encrypted address - if your system cannot use this feature please phone Julian
Links for other Australian Footballing Nations in Europe:
Danish Australian Football League: www.dafl.dk
Swedish Australian Football Assoc: www.safl.se
Australian Football League Germany: www.aflg.de
British Aussie Rules Football League: www.barfl.co.uk
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Rugby
in Finland
Naturally we start with the best sport first! Rugby
is a growing sport in Finland, with 2002 seeing the
beginning of Finland's first league, comprising five
teams. This represented a major step up from 2001 during
which there were only two registered rugby teams in
Finland. At that point the game was played mainly by
expats, but time has seen many native Finns joining
the sport. Not only that, but the ladies are playing
too!
Expat Finland must admit a partiality to the Warriors
Rugby Club (W.R.C.) in Helsinki, with their board
consisting of a Scot, an Aussie, a Kiwi and two Finns.
Surely some friendly rivalries in that lot! Apart from
playing the game they have many social events as well.
Check
their site for more information.
More Finnish rugby sites:
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Cricket
in Finland
The Finnish Cricket Association
(FCA)
The FCA (Suomen Krikettiliitto ry) was set up in 1999
to develop and organise the game of cricket in Finland.
Currently the National League has13 teams, including
clubs from Helsinki, Turku and Tampere, a Naval Academy
team and a Ladies' team.
Regional development includes
expansion into Oulu, Jyväskylä and
Lahti. The national team won their first tournament
in Zagreb 2002, and the game is being introduced
in some schools.
Lots of information at the FCA
Web site - http://www.cricketfinland.com.
Team listing at http://www.cricketfinland.com/cgi-bin/blosxom.cgi/English/Menu/Teams
The SKK City Cricket Club
(Helsinki)
SKK (Stadin Kriketti Kerho) 'was formed in 1994 by
a number of "cricketers" who at the time were
too fat, lazy or drunk to play for the established Helsinki
Cricket Club'. Enough said!
Actually SKK has gone from strength to strength; it
now beats the Helsinki Cricket Club on a regular basis
and last year five of its players represented Finland
in official international competition in Austria.
Club details, calendar and more at the SKK
Web site.
Turku Cricket
Club
http://turku.cc.googlepages.com
The Turku Cricket Club's a mixed bunch; Finn's, Brits,
Aussies, Kiwis, Afghanis, Iranians, South Africans,
Indians, Pakistanis, Bangladeshis... A model of cross-cultural
co-operation!
In 2005 TCC will have two teams playing in separate
leagues. One's a development league for those learning,
and those that want to be less serious about the game.
The other's the Finnish league, which is deadly serious
for some but not for Turku! We're also expecting a visit
from the MCC this year.
There are five Cricket in Schools projects either
ongoing or being planned in Turku. However, we need
help doing that.
E-mail for more information: turku.cc@gmail.com
Tampere Cricket Club
The young multi-cultural Tampere Cricket Club was
founded in April 2000, and after 2 years of development
and friendly games, made a successful entry into the
FCA League in 2002.
We enjoy playing, learning about,
and teaching cricket, and aim to develop cricket in
Tampere and further afield in Finland. Indoor training
sessions are usually held from January till April,
after which the Finnish national outdoor season starts.
We
are especially happy to introduce any newcomers to
the game. All are welcome !!!
Tampere Cricket Club Site: http://tampere.cc.googlepages.com
See also:
http://www.cricketfinland.com/cgi-bin/blosxom.cgi/English/Menu/Teams/Tampere
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American
Football in Finland
Helsinki Wolverines
The Helsinki Wolverines have been going since 1995;
they have men's, women's and junior teams. Web site in Finnish only
American Football Association
of Finland (SAJL)
The Web site is in Finnish only so no piece of cake
for the linguistically challenged (i.e. me), but if
you're into American Football you should be able to
get some good info from the following contacts:
Suomen
Amerikkalaisen Jalkapallon Liitto ry (SAJL)
Töölön Kisahalli
Paavo Nurmen kuja 1 Aa
00250 Helsinki
Tel: 09 436 83211
Fax: 09 436 83210
Email:office@sajl.org
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Borgå
Akilles - Porvoon Akilles Sports Club
"Akilles",
a sports club in Porvoo (about 50km east of Helsinki),
was founded in 1902 and is firmly established as Porvoo's
leading sports club. The club has both Swedish- and
Finnish-speaking supporters, and is divided into 8 sections:
cycling, bandy, football, handball, orienteering, country
skiing, track & field and outdoor sports.
Cycling has been Akilles' most successful
sport; 7 of their cyclists have taken part in the Olympic
Games and 12 cyclists have participated in World Championships.
This is not really an 'expat sports' club (unless you
count Swedish speakers!) but for any sporty people in
the region it sounds great!
Web site:
http://www.akilles.fi
(mainly in Finnish & Swedish but briefly in
10 other languages)
Contacts for the various sports divisions are at the
site.
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Sports
Facilities in Helsinki & Turku
Helsinki
Information on Helsinki sports facilities
is available at the website of the City
of Helsinki Sports Department*. Info in English includes:
- Outdoor
Swimming Pools
- Indoor
Swimming Pools
- Rastila
Camping Site (for camping, see also the Accommodation
section)
*Link changes often! If it fails, go to 'Sports & Exercise' at http://www.hel.fi/wps/portal/Helsinki_en/
Turku
Turku City Sports Department arranges physical activities
in various parts of Turku. Among the sports sites are
Urheilupuisto in the city center, Alfa, Kupittaa, Impivaara
and Varissuo sports centres and a popular Parkkimäki
outdoor skating centre. These centres offer facilities
for athletics, football (soccer), basketball, tennis
and swimming among others. Reservations of sports facilities
located in schools and of outdoor grounds for groups
can be made at the Sports Department. The department
also has areas for outdoor activities and recreation
and you can book a suitable exercise time for your group.
Turku City Sports Department
Blombergin aukio 4 / Hippoksentie 6,
20720 Turku
Tel. (02) 2623 111
Fax (02) 262 3255
http://www.turku.fi
(English/Finnish/Swedish)
Go to In English > Sports
and Outdoor Activities
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Bicycle
Repairs & Sales
Teemu Kalvas has put together a comprehensive list of bike shops in the Greater Helsinki Area, although I'm not sure how often it's been updated:
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