Date of birth: 16th May 1995 Residence: Lahti Club: Lahden Hiihtoseura
Interview (11.03.2016) Leevi, you often seem like a positive person to most people. How do you see yourself and where would you find your strengths and weaknesses?
I think that not every time I look like it I'm actually positive or happy in my head. But that's not important. It's most important to be positive. This is just sport, nothing more. So why should I be so angry when I jump bad [e.g.]? It's only one jump and there will be really many jumps in the future, so I try to be positive. And also it's my weakness right now. I have to train it in my head. I think it's always good to train your mind for the future so you can step up to the top.
What experiences did you make doing your basic military service and did it interfere with your training?
I think that year was good and I really had a lot of time for training. But the most difficult thing was resting afterwards. We didn't have a straight schedule e.g. for sleeping in between trainings. So that's quite hard when you train hard. All in all, it was a good experience but I don't want to continue! [laughs] I think that it's much better to train for example at home and in training camps. There you can recover better after training.
What are your feelings about this winter and which goals do you have for the future?
Well, at first it felt like a really horrible winter. The first month was quite hard because my body wasn't in a good mode. I trained too hard and had much to do in trainings and some other things. But after the Christmas holiday it went really much better and I'm happy about that. It was also a good experience to go to World Cups this season. I'm happy every time that I can be on TV [laughs]. I think it's really important to my sponsors and of course I also just like to be there.
What do you like to do in your free time?
When I'm at home in Lahti I like to call my old friends. This year it was quite difficult as I haven't been in Lahti very often. So I called my friends and tried to get some quality time with them. Because it's only one or two years after school that you can call them or you will lose the contact. I think that's most important. And I like to do some other things than sports e.g. playing billiard, table tennis, watching great movies and just chilling with friends.