15-year-old kayaker Veikka Viinisalo stuns spectators with freestyle tricks in eastern Finland

A 15-year-old Finnish kayaker has become a local tourist attraction in Lieksa as he prepares for the European Freestyle Kayaking Championships, reports Yle, Finland’s national public broadcaster.

Veikka Viinisalo, from Joensuu, practices daring maneuvers in the Neitikoski rapids, drawing attention from passersby who stop to watch and film his routines. During a recent one-hour session, all three groups that passed by recorded his performance on their phones.

Viinisalo will compete in the junior category at the European Championships in June, held on his home rapids in Lieksa—a rare competition site surrounded by untouched nature. The event is unique in Europe for its wild, natural setting, far from urban areas.

“It’s not as dangerous as it looks,” Viinisalo said of his sport, which involves flips and spins in fast-moving water. While shoulder dislocations can happen, he described freestyle kayaking as relatively safe. He often trains alongside his father, Lassi Hiltunen, who admits to looking away only during riskier downriver races, not during freestyle sessions.

Preparing for the championships requires endurance in cold conditions. Viinisalo began training as soon as the ice cleared from Neitikoski this spring. “The water is freezing now,” he said in a video interview, “but by June, it’ll warm up.”

The championships, though lesser-known than Olympic slalom canoeing, attract high-level international competitors. Viinisalo aims to finish in the top ten in his age group and hopes the event will boost visibility for the sport. “I want lots of spectators—this could really put freestyle kayaking on the map,” he said.

Jyri Hämäläinen, head of freestyle kayaking at the Finnish Canoeing and Rowing Federation, expects around 200 spectators for the finals—a strong turnout given Neitikoski’s remote location, a two-hour drive from Joensuu near the eastern border. “We’re counting on North Karelians to make the trip,” Hämäläinen said.

While the site’s isolation might deter some, Viinisalo believes his familiarity with the rapids gives him an edge. “Competing at home feels more secure,” he said. “And if the championships were held now in April, the foreign athletes would definitely find the water cold.”