Lumo sponsorship and grants
The Lumo sponsorship and grant programme supports top Finnish athletes as well as individual and team sports for young people. Launched in 2012, the programme promotes wellbeing through physical activity by awarding grants and sponsorship to promising young athletes. Sponsorship and grants are part of our sustainability programme.
Lumo sponsorship programme supports future winners
The sponsorship programme offers financial support to young sporting talent with the talent and attitude to make it to the very top. Sponsorship requires recommendations from the governing body of the sport and the coach, success in competitions and an age of 14 years or more.
Next time Lumo sponsorship programme is available for applications in autumn 2024.
Lumo grants support children and young athletes with their hobbies
Grants are awarded to 12 to 20-year-old athletes who show commitment to training and a passion for success in order to encourage them in their sporting careers.
The grants are available to any promising young athletes who have already engaged in active sports as a member of a sports club or such for several years and who need financial support for their hobby. Lumo residents are given priority in the selection. Grants are awarded for both team and individual sports.
Next time Lumo grants are available for applications in autumn 2024.
Lumo-sponsored athletes and teams in 2024
For the 2024 season, the Lumo athletes are Viivi Lehikoinen (400m hurdles), Henry Manni (wheelchair racing), Emil Soravuo (gymnastics) and Juulia Turkkila & Matthias Versluis (ice dance).
The OVO Gymnastics club’s women’s first team OVO Team will continue as the team sponsorship partner.
Viivi Lehikoinen, 400m hurdles
Viivi Lehikoinen started athletics at the age of 6 and is now a full-time hurdler. Viivi is part of the internationally elite coaching group and has been able to elevate her performance to the top of the sport through this training. In 2024, she aims for success in both the European Championships and the Paris Olympics. Viivi was among the first athletes selected for the Olympics.
Viivi has achieved remarkable success both domestically and internationally.
Achievements:
- Personal best: 400mH 54.40 / Finnish record
- World Championships 2023 11th place
- Indoor European Championships 2023 (400 m) 11th place
- European Championships 2022 6th place
- World Championships 2022 13th place
Viivi’s thoughts on the cooperation with Lumo:
“I am a multiple-time youth championship medalist, a member of the adult Olympic team in Tokyo, and soon in Paris. I joined the Lumo team in 2022 and had a breakthrough year, setting the adult Finnish record. Coincidence? Probably not! Even before Lumo sponsorship, I received a Lumo scholarship as a youth, and with it, we bought spikes that later helped me win youth European Championship gold. That, too, is unlikely to be a coincidence!”
Henry Manni, wheelchair sprint
Henry Manni has five World Championship medals, ten European Championship gold medals, and his most significant achievement is the Paralympic bronze medal from Rio in 2016. He also has numerous medals from youth championships and two European Championship silver medals. In total, Henry has 18 medals from adult championships, competing in the T34 class.
Henry holds the European records for the 200 meters and 400 meters, as well as several Finnish records. In the 2021 Paralympic Games in Tokyo, Manni finished fourth and fifth. His next goal is to once again stand on the Paralympic podium at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
Henry’s thoughts on the long-term cooperation with Lumo:
”Lumo has been my longest-standing partner and a truly important supporter for over ten years. Over the the decade, there have been 18 championship medals, challenges, disappointments, and joy, but the collaboration has endured and continues to this day. I cannot put into words how much I appreciate this exceptionally long partnership.”
Emil Soravuo, Gymnastics
Emil Soravuo at last became known to the whole nation in October 2021, when he won the historic bronze medal at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships. At the 2022 European Artistic Gymnastics Championships, he placed 11th and became Finnish champion in the same year. Emil has competed successfully in the World Cup, placing 4th, 5th and 6th in 2018–2019, and winning gold in the European Games 2019.
Emil’s thoughts on the cooperation with Lumo: “Continued cooperation with Lumo is very important in order for me to be able to continue the demanding preparations for the Paris Olympics and, above all, to take care of my body in this strenuous sport. It’s really great to be one of the successful Lumo athletes.”
Juulia Turkkila & Matthias Versluis, ice dance
Juulia Turkkila and Matthias Versluis are an ice dance pair who have been skating together since 2016. Before their career in ice dance, both competed as solo skaters, achieving, among other things, Finnish championships in 2014.
Juulia and Matthias’s career in ice dance has been on an upward trajectory: at their first major event, the 2019 European Championships, they placed 11th, and 16th at the World Championships in the same season. In 2022, the pair represented Finland at the Beijing Olympics, finishing 15th. At the World Championships in the same year, they came 12th. The pair also achieved their first podium finish in the 2022 ISU Grand Prix series, winning bronze at the Grand Prix of Espoo.
Achievements:
- European Championships 2023 bronze
- World Championships 2023 9th place
- Finlandia Trophy Espoo 2023 1st place
- Grand Prix Espoo 2023 3rd place
Juulia and Matthias’s thoughts on the cooperation with Lumo:
“We consider the Lumo partnership to be extremely important, as it enables us to strive for the pinnacle of ice dance with the support we receive. It was wonderful to hear that we could continue this collaboration that began last year and be part of the Lumo team.”
OVO Team Olarin Voimistelijat, Team Gymnastics
The OVO Team is a multiple-time national and world medalist in team gymnastics.
The team coach Anne Niemenkari-Kilpi’s thoughts on the cooperation with Lumo:
”It’s wonderful that the collaboration with Lumo continues, as their support has been significant for our team, enabling us to pursue success in prestigious competitions in the future as well. Team gymnastics is one of the most popular sports for girls in Finland, and by supporting women’s sports, Lumo plays a crucial role.”
Page updated 21 December 2023