Matti Nykänen, Ski Jump Champion, Dies At Age 55 -- R.I.P.
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| Matti Nykanen 2014 - Credit: Jakke Nikkarinen / Suomen Moneta [CC BY 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons |
As one of the top ski jump athletes in history, he was able to win several world competitions over his career from 1981 to 1991. During that time he won five Winter Olympic medals (four gold), nine World Championship medals (five gold, and 22 Finnish Championship medals (14 gold).
Not only was he a top athlete, but he also made a career out of being a pop star in his homeland of Finland, having released three albums during the nineties and early 2000's.
However, his athletic and celebrity success also came with a dark side, which includes a jail sentence of just over two years after a stabbing incident. There are also other stories about violent tendencies and alcohol abuse.
Though some of those stories maybe true, as well as the ones that were confirmed over the years, Nykänen was the best at what he did on a hill. We can all hope that he will be remembered for that most of all. R.I.P.
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