Athlete Bios

Nordic Combined

Anssi Koivuranta: Nordic combined star, media darling

Finland athlete was the World Cup overall champion in the 2008-09 season

Last Updated: Monday, February 8, 2010 | 9:35 AM ET

New York Times for CBC Sports

Anssi Koivuranta, known as AnZi, is closely followed by the Finnish entertainment press. (Olivier Morin/Getty Images)

The Finnish Nordic combined athlete Anssi Koivuranta made his Olympic debut at Turin, Italy, in 2006 at just 17 years old.

Although he did not win an individual medal, he helped his team win bronze and established himself as one of the most promising young athletes in a sport that often favours more seasoned competitors.

Koivuranta became the World Cup overall champion for 2008-09, capping a season in which he made 16 trips to the podium, including seven first-place finishes.

An excellent jumper who has struggled at the cross-country skiing portion of the sport, Koivuranta has sometimes been asked whether he plans to leave Nordic combined for ski jumping. In March of 2009, Koivuranta jumped more than 200 metres and took second place at a ski-jumping event in Planica, Slovenia. In an interview after his remarkable performance, Koivuranta insisted that he would stick with his chosen sport. "Nordic combined is my thing," he said.

Koivuranta, whose nickname is AnZi, grew up in Kuusamo, a small town in northern Finland that is a centre for winter sports. With a movie-star smile and a head of unruly blond hair, Koivuranta is closely followed by the Finnish entertainment press and has no shortage of female fans. Koivuranta, who is single, has clearly capitalized on this attention - his website sells a calendar in which he is depicted in a variety of shirtless poses.