Emmi Lämsä injured her shoulder early in the winter and was sidelined from competitive skiing for the rest of the season. She had two months to decide whether to undergo shoulder surgery. Early winter isn’t the ideal time for a skier to have surgery, but the decision was ultimately easy for the athlete.

“During a ski outing, I tried to use poles and it felt like my shoulder was about to come off. That’s when I decided to go for surgery immediately, and four days later, I had a major operation in Helsinki.”

After the surgery, Lämsä focused for a few weeks solely on healing her arm, followed by rehabilitation. She maintained her aerobic fitness by cycling with her hand tied to her body.

Lämsä admits that the winter was a difficult time for her.

“Right after the surgery, there were the Finnish Championships in Vantaa, but I couldn’t even open the TV to watch the races. It felt terribly unfair to get injured at that point in the season, especially after a good training period.”

However, her studies in educational sciences diverted Lämsä’s thoughts elsewhere. Due to the training break caused by the injury, she managed to advance her studies to the point where she recently became a Bachelor of Educational Sciences.

“Studies were a bit of a lifesaver during the winter. When the first major injury happened, it would have been even harder if I hadn’t had another goal to work towards,” says Lämsä to Maastohiihto.com.

Successes boost self-confidence

In mid-April, Lämsä was able to try running and subsequently skiing. She mentions that her summer training has been going well despite the challenges of last winter. Nevertheless, her results in last week’s Aateli Race came as a surprise.

In the summer races held in Vuokatti, she placed tenth in the 1.6-kilometer prologue and fifth in the three-kilometer cross-country race.

“It was a surprise to perform that well. There have been many variable days, and I haven’t been able to train quantitatively as much as in recent years. That’s why those results gave me confidence that things are progressing on schedule and rehabilitation is going well.”

According to the plan, Lämsä credits a well-functioning team for her progress.

“Jukka Salon has been in charge of my rehabilitation, and I’ve collaborated with Reijo Jylhä on technique. I’m very grateful to have such figures supporting me, as without a well-functioning team, the return to my previous level would have taken much longer.”

New opportunities with a team change

This season, Lämsä switched teams from Visa Ski Team Kemi to AT Ski Team, named after Antti Tuisku.

She mentioned craving something new and thus decided to apply for the team.

“It’s great that a team like that was finally created for women, where you can work together as a group and get good coaching and sparring through Reijo Jylhä in the local area. There were many good reasons why I felt it was worth applying.”

Lämsä explains that before the team was announced, it felt strange not knowing who else had been selected. She finds the team composition a pleasant surprise.

“I’m very happy with our group. I get along really well with the girls, and everyone has the same mindset. We all have the drive to push each other forward, and it’s fantastic that we have a team around us handling the club’s affairs.”

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