20 metre club


The 20 metre club is an unregistered Finnish association for Finnish shot putters who have put the shot more than 20 metres in an official competition using a 7.26 kg shot for men and a 4 kg for women.
The 20 metre club was founded on April 28, 1983, at Eerikkilä Sports Academy with six men being selected as members. One of the goals of the club is to promote the development of shot putting in Finland.
The club meets twice a year, once in the spring and once in the fall. In its fall meeting, the club awards the "Kultapoju" or Golden Boy to a promising shot putter. The Golden Boy is a brass shot that is slightly larger than the current standard shot, although it weighs less. The first recipient of the Golden Boy award was Kari Töyrylä in 1985; Töyrylä became a member of the club in 1986 after his put of 20.05 m on July 2. The last recipient to date was Niko Hauhia, who also received a EUR 500 stipend for training. The club also awards training grants in order to promote and help athletes develop.

Members

As of July 2018, the club had 21 members. Of these, Seppo Simola, Jari Kuoppa, and Bo Grahn are deceased.

Members of the club and the first time they put the shot more than 20 m

NameDistanceDateLocation
1.Seppo Simola20.15July 19, 1972Turku, Finland
2.Matti Yrjölä20.04August 2, 1972Hämeenkyrö, Finland
3.Bo Grahn20.09August 3, 1972Helsinki, Finland
4.Reijo Ståhlberg20.38July 26, 1973Turku, Finland
5.Markku Tuokko20.03August 18, 1979Mikkeli, Finland
6.Aulis Akonniemi20.12July 25, 1982Ähtäri, Finland
7.Janne Ronkainen20.02May 11, 1986Leselidse, Soviet Union
8.Jari Kuoppa20.17June 12, 1986Ähtäri, Finland
9.Kari Töyrylä20.05July 2, 1986Kauhajoki, Finland
10.Markus Koistinen20.31June 13, 1993Luumäki, Finland
11.Mika Halvari20.08August 4, 1993Kotka, Finland
12.Arsi Harju20.16March 2, 1997Tampere, Finland
13.Timo Aaltonen20.12June 20, 1998Kuortane, Finland
14.Jani Illikainen20.43January 23, 1999Haaparanda, Sweden
15.Ville Tiisanoja20.06July 31, 1999Espoo, Finland
16.Jarkko Haukijärvi20.20July 1, 2000Eurajoki, Finland
17.Tepa Reinikainen20.01February 13, 2000Kuopio, Finland
18.Conny Karlsson20.45May 31, 2001Espoo, Finland
19.Robert Häggblom20.13May 20, 2006Halle, Germany
20.Mika Vasara20.04June 4, 2006Leppävirta, Finland
21.Arttu Kangas20.09February 22, 2015Tampere, Finland