Mervi Pesu

Mervi Pesu (born Väisänen ; born May 2, 1973 ) is a Finnish ski orienteer and former mountain bike orienteer .

career

Mervi Väisänen first took part in a ski orienteering world championship in Pontarlier, France, in 1992 and finished twelfth over the short distance. It wasn't until ten years later that she was back in the Finnish World Cup squad and won the bronze medal in the long distance behind the Swede Lena Hasselström and the Finnish Erja Jokinen . In the summer of 2002, she also started at the first world championships in mountain bike orienteering in Fontainebleau, France , winning the gold medal with Kirsi Korhonen and Päivi Tommola with the relay and silver behind the French Laure Coupat on the short distance.

In 2008 she won EM gold with Liisa Anttila and Hannele Valkonen in orienteering skiing and behind the Russian Tatjana Vlasowa and Anttila EM bronze in the long distance. In the middle distance race, she was fourth. After that, she only started again at European and World Championships in 2013 at the age of 39. In Madona , Latvia , she won a silver and a bronze medal in the sprint and middle distance at the European Championships. At the World Championships in March 2013 in Ridder , Kazakhstan, she won sprint silver behind Swede Tove Alexandersson , and in the long distance she was first ahead of Russian Tatjana Koslowa . She won two more medals with Milka Leppäsalmi and Marjut Turunen in the relay (bronze) and with Staffan Tunis in the mixed sprint (silver). In 2014 in Tyumen she was 40 years old European champion on the long distance and with Mira Kaskinen and Sonja Mörsky in the relay.

Pesu is married to Raino Pesu , who also won several medals at world championships in ski orienteering and mountain bike orienteering.

Placements

Ski orienteering

World Championships: (1 × gold, 2 × silver, 2 × bronze)

• 1992 : 12th place short
• 2002 : 11th place sprint, 3rd place long
• 2005 : 17th place medium, 7th place long
• 2013 : 2nd place sprint, 8th place medium, 1st place long, 3rd place relay, 2nd place mixed

European Championships: (3 × gold, 1 × silver, 2 × bronze)

• 2008 : 11th place sprint, 4th place medium, 3rd place long, 1st place relay
• 2013 : 2nd place sprint, 3rd place medium, 13th place long, 4th place relay
• 2014 : 12th place sprint, 4th place medium, 1st place long, 1st place relay, 4th place mixed

Mountain bike orientation

World Championships: (1 × gold, 1 × silver)

• 2002 : 2nd place short, 10th place long, 1st place relay

Web links

• Mervi Pesu 6prog.org