Mikko Tapio Latvala (born 8 July 1980 in
Vaasa
Vaasa (; sv, Vasa, , Sweden ), in the years 1855–1917 as Nikolainkaupunki ( sv, Nikolajstad; literally meaning "city of Nicholas), ) is a Finnish pole vaulter. He won a silver medal for his category at the
2001 European Athletics Under-23 Championships in
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban are ...
, with his best possible height of 5.50 metres. In 2007, Latvala suffered from multiple serious injuries, including a torn chest muscle as a result of a weightlifting accident in South Africa.
Latvala qualified for the
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...
in
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
, by successfully clearing a B-standard height of 5.63 metres from the Finnish Elite Games series in
Lapua.
[ He placed twenty-second in the first round of men's pole vault, with a best possible height of 5.45 metres, tying his overall position with Ukraine's ]Oleksandr Korchmid
Oleksandr Korchmid ( uk, Олександр Корчмід; born 22 January 1982) is a Ukrainian pole vaulter.
As a junior, he won silver medals at the 1999 World Youth Championships and the 2000 World Junior Championships. He was also a ...
.
References
External links
*
Profile – Suomen Olympiakomitea
Finnish male pole vaulters
Living people
Olympic athletes for Finland
Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Sportspeople from Vaasa
1980 births
Finnish Athletics Championships winners
{{Finland-athletics-bio-stub