Lasse Kuusisto, 3rd degree

I've known Lasse Kuusisto since being under school age when his family moved to my hood at Vammala. Ever since we played i.a. football and ice-hockey together in the same teams. When we were still at elementary school Lasse began with a new hobby, something called Taekwon-Do. I wasn't much interested in that kind of childish stuff untill I one day noticed that my friend can do a side split. I couldn't, and this is how TKD cought my attention. I went to see a grading, a competition and a training session and was sold. When I went to the beginners' course Lasse already had a red belt. Here's more information about the guy whose example I followed when I started Taekwon-Do.

Date and place of birth: February 20th 1978 in Vammala
Place of residence: Tampere
Degree: 3rd dan
Education and profession: Bachelor of Science in Sofware engineering, working for a certain Finnish company that makes cellularphone networks (some might call it Nokia) as a system engineer.
Club: Tampereen Taekwon-Do since 2000... or was it 2001.
Started Taekwon-Do: 1989 in Vammala
Achievements: Junior World Champion 1995 in team power test, European Championships bronze medalist in patterns 2007 and two team bronzes in EC's 2004.
Other hobbies: ice-hockey and computers

You were rather young when you started Taekwon-Do. What made you get into it and stay along all the way till today?
Indeed, I was 11 when I started training Taekwon-Do. I guess at that age and at that time kicking-stuff was a cool thing and my school mate Harri Haapahuhta told me he would start training Taekwon-Do. I went to see one trainings of Vammala club, where the conducter that day happened to be Erkka Keinänen all the way from Tampere (50km). I think Erkka had 2nd degree back then and seeing a black belt got a small boy thinking that I wish I had a black belt too... A beginners' course was conveniently starting just at that time and that's how I got started. Practicing Taekwon-Do has always been nice and interesting. One constantly learns new things, though there are already quite many years of training behind. I've also got many friends through the hobby. These are most likely the things that still make me go lay about regularly.

Tell something about your first steps within the art in Vammala. Has something especially stayed in your mind from those days.
Markku Koski was the first teacher in Vammala and he had a red belt. About two years later Erkka Keinänen took the responsibility in Vammala, and Erkka has been the person that got me into training techniques and patterns, since he was a rather good instructor in that aspect. The trainings in Vammala were in the gym halls of schools on wooden floors and there were relatively more kicking trainings then than nowadays. Hands weren't used much in sparring and even if they were it was mostly for faking. The first grading has also stayed in my memories well. The grading took place in the college gym hall and the graduator was Fikret Güler, the head coach of Finland at that time. I had forgotten to take money for the grading fee but luckily mr. Güler was late and I managed to run to my mom's workplace, get money from her and get back in time. Luckily it wasn't a long way...

You, like me, had a long break from Taekwon-Do. What made you return to training?
A bit over three years it was, I think. The trainings began reducing and slowly ending in Vammala and I also had other things in mind like the young men at the age of 18-19 tend to have. I moved to Tampere to study and Mikko Allinniemi suggested me a couple of time to come back to training. After thinking about it for some time I thought why not and one Tuesday I encouraged myself, packed my training bag and got off to Nääshalli for training. I think Mikko conducted that training but he was the only one I knew there. So BIG thanks to Mikko for talking me over to get back!

Did you also decide to get back to competing right away, or did this idea take some time?
It didn't take long before my blood drew me back to the competition rings. I was once coaching the Tampere club in the Winternational Open arranged by the Black Eagle Taekwon-Do club and watching the competition I realized that I must get in too. I had to use a lot of time for training patterns, since the techniques had gone through rather big changes from what I was thought during my years off. Especially the sine wave was introduced in Finland relatively late. I remembered the patterns through surprisingly easily and therefore could put more emphasize in perfecting the movements and adapting the sine wave that was new to me.

I think not too many people even know that you have a junior World Championship title in team power test. Tell more about that achievement and the trip to that competition.
The Championships took place in Warsaw, Poland in 1995 and it was the second junior World Champs. It was the first big competition I participated and also my first time in a competition abroad. It was a big competition, I think there were over 50 countries participating. Finland had a team of six competitors and two coaches. There were rather exotic countries from the Finnish point of view in the Championships, e.g. North-Korea, Uzbekistan, Kirgystan and Tadzikistan, which we faced in team sparring. Finland has traditionally had strong teams in power test and so it was then too. We were among the first teams to perform and had to wait for other teams to complete for a long time. We got good points and when the final team left the mat our coaches checked the points from the jury table. After that we started a wild celebration! It was just an incredible feeling to stand on the highest step of the podium and see the Finnish flag being raised to the flagpole in the middle while national anthem was being played. It was difficult to believe it was true. On that trip I also saw general Choi for the first time, so that trip ment many new experiences for a young man. It was also nice to return to the same venue in the World Champs 2003, though the hall had been fixed up since my first visit.

This Spring you finally achieved an individual medal in the European Championships by taking bronze in the 3rd degree patterns in Slovakia. In my opinion you had have what it takes already before but for some reason the podium stayed out of your reach this far. What do you think about this yourself and how does that achievemen feel like?
Achieving an individual medal in patterns has been my goal already for several years and the feeling was absolutely great, even though I lost to Marius Ionicescu of Romania, who won the category. At the moment of defeat I was sad but that feeling went by quickly because I knew I had achieved a medal. I lost to the same man in the World Championships quarter finals in Poland 2003 (2nd degree), so I couldn't get my revenge... at least not yet. In Finland I've always done quit well when it comes to results but for some reason the same trend hasn't prevailed in the European and World Championships. Could it be that the umpires in Finland judge the patterns a bit differently than in other countries...

You are especially known as a patterns and power test guy but you also train other aspects of the art regularely. Tell about about your attitude towards Taekwon-Do and training it.
Patterns have been "my thing" right from the start, but sure I've trained sparring and breaking too, sometimes more and sometimes a little less. Taekwon-Do is such fine, versatile and technically challenging art that I've always trained with the intention to get better. Definitely it's worthwile to train all the aspects, since they support each other.

How often do you train, what things do you emphasise in your training and does your training include something else besides Taekwon-Do?
Normally I train 4-6 times a week. Sometime back I trained only fundamental techniques and patterns but by time I got enough of that. Nowadays I try to train all the aspects in Taekwon-Do trainings, for they support each other for sure. Besides that I play ice-hockey approximately once a week at winter time. Ice-hockey is good for basic conditioning but also brings explosiveness to my legs. Oh, and besides it's fun! If at winter there's no ice-hockey at some week I go swimming or to the gym to throw some weights around. At the gym I try to improve explosiveness, especially for hands, and strengthen abdominals and back muscles. My attitude towards training has changed during the last couple of years. Before the home-Euros 2004 I trained only for that competition. Nowadays I train so that I would do the techniques correctly and to make the patterns look better than before. I only compete if I feel I'm good enough to succeed.

You also conduct many trainings in Tampere Taekwon-Do club. Doesn't this take valuable time and energy from your own training? Do you think you can train enough?
I've learned remarkably much about Taekwon-Do by conducting trainings, so I don't see it as a disturbance for training for competitions in any way. Often, especially when teaching more difficult techniques, I get recognitions and teaching the same thing the next time is a lot easier. I've conducted 1-2 trainings a week already for several years and I haven't seen this as something disturbing my own training, on the contrary.

What are your objectives with TKD in the future? Have you already thought about grading for 4th degree and how long are you planning to continue compiting?
The next grading has crossed my mind but it won't be topical untill one or two years. In practice I can't go for grading before next year (2008) when the minimum time with my current grade becomes full. But we'll see about it then... The continuence of competition career depends a lot of in how good condition I can lash myself, for I really don't want to go to competitions to lose in first or second round. In addition getting over some injuries has it's affect. In the World Champs I kicked a rather big contusion injury in my heel and the doctor has estimated it to take 2-3 months to get better. Sometimes I've boasted that I'll at least go to the Finnish Champs as long as I can give good competition for the younger ones

What's greatest about Taekwon-Do, how does compiting develop a practitioner in your opinion?
Compiting strengthens the mental side and especially patterns competitions teach one to perform. Whether you win or lose you most likely learn to take new views over things also in your every day life. Serious competing also drives you to think about techniques and through that you learn more, as well as about the training of the physical side. It may sound like a cliché but the the greatest thing about Taekwon-Do is without a doubt it's all-roundness. One has to train really diligently to master all the aspects.

Even though you are still young and handsome you already have a long history with TKD. Tell some funny memory from the beginning of your career, or even from later years, if there's been such events.
I already mentioned the first grading in the beginning. Looking back a funny thing. I came up with another amusing story from the Vammala days, though: I think I was a red belt and before a demonstration for a beginners' course Jussi Jokinen was warming up by doing squats. I went behind him and as Jussi was down I kicked bandae dolly chagi over his head. I thought I'll do it again, as the first one went that well, but the second one hit Jussi right on the ear. Luckily it wasn't a hard kick! From the later years at least one grading where I was commanding has stayed in my mind. According to someone participating the grading Won Hyo was a well-known Buddhist monk who brought Christianity to Europe...

In the end the word is yours...
Take cameras with you to seminars and competitions. It's easier to recall the good old days through the pictures years after the events!

Big thanks to you, Lasse, wish you good trainings and success!
Thanks and same to you!