Pentti Linnosvuo

Although born in Vaasa, Pentti Linnosvuo grew up in Helsinki and as a youth played ice hockey with HJK, and basketball and football with Viiputin Sudet. Linnosvuo took up shooting when he was 15-years-old. He started as a rifle shooter, but soon switched to pistol shooting because he was left-handed. In 1951, at 18-years-old, Linnosvuo won his first Finnish title. He would win 15 more Finnish titles between 1952 and 1967. At the 1952 Olympics, Linnosvuo established himself as one of the World’s top pistol shooters by finishing fifth in the rapid-fire pistol. Linnosvuo competed in four more Olympics and won golds in 1956 in free pistol and in 1964 in the rapid-fire pistol, and a silver in 1960 in the rapid-fire pistol event. He was also the Finnish flag bearer at the Opening Ceremony of the 1968 Olympics. Linnosvuo competed in five World Championships, but was successful only in his first World Championships in 1954 in Venezuela, where he won gold in Venezuela-pistol team event and bronzes in individual and team rapid-fire pistol events. Linnosvuo also won the free pistol at the 1957 Nordic Championships and the rapid-fire pistol at the 1954, 1957, 1961, 1963 and 1973 Nordic Championships. From 1957-65 Linnosvuo worked with S Group (S-ryhmä), a Finnish retailing cooperative organization and from 1965 until his retirement he worked with M-real Corporation, a Finnish pulp and paper company. Linnosvuo also worked as a pistol coach with the Finnish, West German, Swiss and Norwegian national teams. From 1983-99 he was the president of the Finnish Hunting Association and from 1995-98 was the chairman of the Finnish Olympic Winners Association.