A brave all-rounder

We easily compartmentalize ourselves and the people around us, because it helps us structure the world. However, we all have many different sides so one should never judge a book by its cover. 

Marianne Hartio, a profile with a strong presence in Finnish gymnastics circles, is a great example of a person who always has a hundred irons in the fire simultaneously, and yet manages it all pretty well. We sat down with “Marri” to talk about how gymnastics has given her the wings to pursue her dreams. This is how she describes her path.

Like many other gymnasts, I used to climb wildly on trees and furniture as a child, so my parents decided to send me to a gymnastics school at the age of three. Our local newsletter advertised toddler gymnastics at a club called Tampereen Voimistelijat. My godmother happened to spot the ad and told my parents about it. I was sent from the same standing to the Ratina Stadium gymnastics hall and the rest is history. Still after more than 20 years in gymnastics, I can only thank my parents (and my godmother) for encouraging me to take up the hobby. I am a true lover of and an advocate for the sport and I live for gymnastics. Once a gymnast, always a gymnast. That is how it is in my life.

I do not feel that one can single out specific peak moments from my gymnastics career. I feel that the entire 19-year-long physical gymnastics career of mine has been great. Including the typical ups and downs at the gym, in training and in competitions. I consider the best memories to be the ones when it all felt extra tough, and from which I still pushed onwards. Those moments have taught me the most and made me the hard-working woman I am today. 

For example, I remember when at 9- years- old I announced that I was quitting artistic gymnastics because I could not learn the “giant” on bars. I called my coach about my intentions. Thankfully, she and my family encouraged me to continue by pretty much all saying the same: "you cannot learn a new skill on the first try. Keep practicing and you will learn it. It is all about persistence." I think it is important for an athlete of such a demanding sport that the support network consists of encouraging people who find the right ways to help one onwards in those challenging moments.

I did gymnastics until I was a teenager when I realized that maybe I was not meant to be a top-level artistic gymnast. Something else in the field of gymnastics kept attracting me. At that time, I did artistic gymnastics with a fantastic group of girls and later we all decided to switch to TeamGym together. This is how a team called Pink Ladies was formed and it gave me the much needed new direction in my life then. Changing the sport meant learning new skills and techniques that required a new kind of speed, height and strength.

The years spent in TeamGym were my best years physically. The physical development was wild. I also gained a new level of confidence. In competitions, I knew I would succeed. I learned to focus in a completely new way and during my competition performances, I used to be so focused on what I was doing that I could not hear or see anything but the piece of equipment I was performing on. It is awesome that I have been able to utilize this skill later on when competing on a high level in other sports.

I competed in the 2012 Finnish senior ladies TeamGym team, which historically won bronze in the European Championships, and had decided to give my career a go until the next European Championship. I had become aware of my strengths as a confident competitor and a great floor routine gymnast. However, I knew I struggled with certain difficulties required to make the new team.

It was the week before the last qualifying camp, during which the final team was to be announced. It  was also during this week the news was delivered to those who were to be dropped out of the team. One day, I came home from work and noticed a message in my email saying I was no longer on the team. So my career stopped. To quit just like that has been one of the hardest experiences of my life since I had to find a completely new direction for my life.

After finishing my career, I did no sports for a while. At my workplace at the time, I was able to go to the gym to train and became interested in powerlifting. That was the beginning of a new competitive sports career in which I competed at the World Championship level for 4 years. I love to compete and train seriously, and as a reward, I am a multiple- time World Champion in powerlifting. After achieving my own goals in the sport, continuing lifting started to feel boring.

Since then, I have switched to hammer throw, where the goals are again set high. I chose a sport where the performance itself is more of a challenge for both my mind and body. After having tested throwing the hammer twice I said to myself: "yes, this is definitely the right sport for me!".

I am often described as the crazy all-arounder. I have worked as a Personal Trainer for over 10 years, of which about five as an entrepreneur in the sports industry. My own and others' health, and the desire to help people feel good, both mentally and physically, fascinates me. 

As a creative doer, I love to see the result of my own creations. A few years ago, I developed a chest strap for a drawstring backpack, which led on a journey with my second business; Marri Bag, a company manufacturing drawstring backpacks from used sails.

I have always dreamed of being a gymnastics commentator and hosting gymnastics competitions, and in the fall of 2021 I got the opportunity to do so as I was asked to host the Finnish Nationals in TeamGym. The gig really exceeded everyone’s expectations, including my own, which resulted in more announcing gigs. It all culminated in the biggest event of my announcer career thus far, i.e. last year's Gymnaestrada in Finland, where I hosted several different gymnastics events.
Announcing and entertaining come very naturally to me. I love to inspire people and make everyone smile. In addition to my personal dreams of starting a family, building my businesses and developing my sports career, my goal is to achieve a strong personal brand in Finnish gymnastics. This time specifically in the role of an announcer. An absolute dream of mine is to be able to comment on international gymnastics competitions on television, which would allow me to share the amazingness of gymnastics with a larger audience.

I am going to continue to challenge myself, because I enjoy stepping outside of my comfort zone and feel the buzz when I start something new. We will see what the future brings.
Currently, I am fully focused on the project of hosting the upcoming Finnish National Gymnastics Championships. The event will be legendary and I promise to do my very best so that everyone who enters the Tampere Exhibition and Sports Center during May 5-7 will be inspired by the magic of gymnastics. LET'S GO, we got this!

The Finnish national championships for all disciplines of gymnastics will be held on May 5-7, 2023 at the Tampere Exhibition and Sports Center. Together with the Finnish Gymnastics Federation, the club Tampereen Voimistelijat will organize an unforgettable event gathering more than 1,000 gymnasts together from all over Finland.

Marianne has been chosen to host the event, so a big time gymnastics celebration will be guaranteed. In addition to CHOPAR being the main partner for TeamGym and Competitive Aerobics, we have chosen to support the event by sponsoring Marianne’s outfits, both in the event promotion and at the event itself.