The Finnish Olympic Committee’s spring meeting was held on May 21, 2026, in Helsinki. The meeting approved the Finnish Olympic Committee’s 2025 annual report and financial statements and adopted amendments to the rules concerning, among other things, membership criteria and disciplinary provisions regarding competition manipulation.  

In his opening remarks at the annual meeting, Petteri Kilpinen, President of the Olympic Committee, summed up 2025 as a year of renewal for Finnish sports.  

– Over the course of the year, we took a critical look at our practices, clarified our direction, and worked together to build a new future for Finnish sports. The collaboration strategy adopted late last year is a strong shared commitment: together we will succeed and use sports to build an even stronger Finland, Kilpinen said.  

According to Kilpinen, Finnish sports have taken determined steps forward, and the focus is firmly on the future. Over the course of the year, support systems for elite sports were reformed in collaboration with various stakeholders. The criteria for Team Finland activities were tightened and cooperation was strengthened with the aim of building an even more competitive operating environment for Finnish athletes.  

The goal of the Olympic Committee’s Next Generation program is to better identify young athletes with the potential for success and support them on their journey to the top of the world.  

In his speech, Kilpinen also highlighted the social significance of sports.  

– The Milano Cortina Winter Olympics once again demonstrated the unique power of sports. In Finland, as many as 4.8 million people watched the Olympics on television. This shows that sports bring people together and foster a shared sense of community—sports are not just sports, Kilpinen emphasized.  

Changes to the Olympic Committee’s rules  

The main item on the agenda at the spring meeting was a discussion of rule changes related to the criteria for Olympic Committee membership and disciplinary provisions regarding competition manipulation.  

The aim of the rule changes is to clarify the conditions for membership and enable a broader membership base, which supports the implementation of the sports cooperation strategy. The rule changes sparked a productive discussion among the members. Following the discussion, one clarification was made to the board’s proposed rules, and no changes were made to the voting rights of members. 

– I am very pleased that the rule changes were approved with minor clarifications and in a spirit of mutual understanding. The members have now had their say, and democracy must be respected. The most important thing is that we have rules that have the support of our members and that will strengthen the cooperation and impact of the entire sports community in the future, says Riku Tapio, CEO of the Olympic Committee.  

The spring meeting also approved disciplinary regulations regarding competition manipulation. A joint disciplinary system independent of member organizations will enable more effective intervention against the manipulation of competition results and events through investigation and disciplinary measures. The Olympic Committee encourages its member organizations to join the shared disciplinary system.  

At the annual meeting, members also heard a progress report on the Olympic Fund.

Attachments: The meeting materials are available in the Spring 2026 meeting materials folder.  

For more information: Finnish Olympic Committee, CEO Riku Tapio, tel. +358 50 3405550