Olavi Alakulppi

{{Short description|Finnish cross-country skier and military officer}}

{{Infobox military person

|name= Olavi Alakulppi

|birth_date=17 July 1915

|death_date= {{death-date and age|19 August 1990|17 July 1915}}

|birth_place=Rovaniemi, Finland

|death_place=Petersburg, Virginia, United States

|image=Olavi Alakulppi.jpg

|caption=Alakulppi during the Continuation War

|nickname=

|allegiance={{flagicon|Finland}} Finland
{{flagicon|United States}} United States

|branch=Finnish Army
United States Army

|serviceyears=

|rank=25px Captain (Finland)
25px Lieutenant colonel (USA)

|commands=

|unit=

|battles=

|awards=

|laterwork=

}}

Olavi Eelis Alakulppi (17 July 1915 – 19 August 1990) was a Finnish military officer and cross-country skier.

Life and career

Alakulppi was born in Rovaniemi, Finland, to Elis and Senja Alakulppi (née Törmänen).

Alakulppi served in the Finnish Army during the Winter War and the Continuation War. In 1942, he was awarded the Mannerheim Cross.

In 1945, in order to evade prosecution for his involvement in the Weapons Cache Case, he skied to Sweden and arranged for his wife Eevi, their son Vesa, and him to travel to the United States, where he joined the United States Army.He became one of the ex-Finnish officers associated with Colonel Alpo K. Marttinen, known as "The Marttinen Men". See: {{cite book|last=Gill III|first=Henry A.|title=Soldier Under Three Flags|date=1998|publisher=Pathfinder Publishing |location=Ventura, CA |isbn=0934793654|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QxSQPeP9Z1gC |oclc=38468782 |chapter= Appendix II Aftermath: Marttinen's Men |pages= 187–193}} He then fought in the Korean War, and served in South Korea, Japan, and West Germany.{{Cite web |url=http://www.mannerheim-ristinritarit.fi/ritarit?xmid=5 |title=ALAKULPPI Olavi Eelis |publisher=Knights Foundation of the Mannerheim Cross |language=fi |access-date=27 December 2021}}{{Cite web |url=https://www.iltalehti.fi/kotimaa/a/a9e004e7-7305-486b-af90-888c1a34cc3f |title=Olavi Alakulppi: uskomaton matka sotasankariksi |last=Kiiski |first=Timo |date=25 September 2021 |website=Iltalehti |language=fi |access-date=27 December 2021}} Vesa Juhani Alakulppi eventually followed his father into the military{{cite news |title=Finnish Youth to West Point |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/107622018/vesa-juhani-alakulppi-1941-1968/ |work=The Manhattan Mercury |date=June 17, 1959 |location=Manhattan, KS |page=3 |accessdate=August 15, 2022 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}} and was killed in action during the Vietnam War.{{cite news |title=Hopewell Native Dies in Vietnam |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/107622145/vesa-juhani-alakulppi-1941-1968/ |work=The Progress-Index |date=May 24, 1969 |location=Petersburg, VA |page=11 |accessdate=August 15, 2022 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}}[http://www.virtualwall.org/da/AlakulppiVJ01a.htm Vesa Alakulppi, CPT, Army, Seattle WA, 14May68 60E007 - The Virtual Wall]

Alakulppi retired from the US Army in 1968 as a lieutenant-colonel. He died in 1990 in Petersburg, Virginia, and is buried in the Arlington National Cemetery.

While Alakulppi served as a company commander in West Germany in the 1950s, his personal chauffeur was Elvis Presley, who was carrying out his military service.[https://yle.fi/uutiset/3-5508070 Elviksen nahkatakki löytyi Sallasta, YLE Uutiset]

During the late 1950s, Alakulppi requested a United Nations commission to investigate the Soviet partisan attacks as war crimes. He had personally witnessed the aftermath of the raid on Seitajärvi and submitted evidence in the form of newspaper reports and photos of the victims. However, the request was rejected and the case was not pursued further.

Alakulppi won a gold medal in the 4 ×10 km cross-country relay at the 1939 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Zakopane.

{{MedalTableTop|File:Zakopane_MM_1939_-_4x10_km_relay_-_Finnish_skiers_Pitkänen_and_Alakulppi.jpg|250px|Pauli Pitkänen and Alakulppi (right) in Zakopane}}

{{MedalCountry | {{FIN}} }}

In literature

Alakulppi has been the focus of several books.

Finland's 2008 War Book of the Year was awarded to non-fiction author Kari Kallonen{{Cite web|url=http://www.sotasankari.fi/sotakirja.php|title=Vuoden Sotakirjat|last=Kallonen|first=Kari|date=November 16, 2017|website=Sotasankari.fi}} for his work "Olavi Alakulppi, sissiluutnantti: Marskin ritari ja maailmanmestari."{{Cite book|title=Olavi Alakulppi, sissiluutnantti: Marskin ritari ja maailmanmestari.|last=Kallonen|first=Kari|publisher=Tampere: Revontuli|year=2008|isbn=978-952-5170-93-1}} Kallonen is a well respected military historian and author who also won the 2016 War Book of the Year for his work "Tähtilippu talvisodassa – Amerikan Suomalaisen Legioonan tuntematon tarina."{{Cite web|url=http://www.revontuli.net/kirjat/tahtilippu_talvisodassa.htm|title=Tahtilippu Talvisodassa|last=Kallonen|first=Kari|date=November 16, 2017|website=Revontuli.net}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.sotasankari.fi/sotakirja.php|title=Vuoden Sotakirjat|last=Kallonen|first=Kari|date=November 16, 2017|website=Sotasankari.fi}}

Kallonen's 2008 book was translated into English in 2017 by Mika Roinila. The translation is entitled "Guerrilla Lieutenant – Olavi Alakulppi: Knight of the Mannerheim Cross and World Skiing Champion".{{Cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/Guerrilla-Lieutenant-Alakulppi-Mannerheim-Champion-ebook/dp/B071ZWQRLS|title=Guerrilla Lieutenant|last=Roinila|first=Mika|date=November 16, 2017|website=amazon.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180131113917/https://www.amazon.com/Guerrilla-Lieutenant-Alakulppi-Mannerheim-Champion-ebook/dp/B071ZWQRLS|archive-date=2018-01-31|url-status=dead}}

Cross-country skiing results

=World Championships=

1 medal – (1 gold)

class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%; text-align:center; border:grey solid 1px; border-collapse:collapse; background:#ffffff;"

! style="background-color:#369; color:white; width:60px;"| Year

! style="background-color:#369; color:white; width:40px;"| Age

! style="background-color:#4180be; color:white; width:75px;"| 18 km

! style="background-color:#4180be; color:white; width:75px;"| 50 km

! style="background-color:#4180be; color:white; width:75px;"| 4 × 10 km
relay

1938

—

1939

—

style="background:gold;"|Gold

References

External links

[http://www.sport-komplett.de/sport-komplett/sportarten/s/ski_nordisch/skilanglauf/hst/3.html World Championship results] {{in lang|de}}
[https://web.archive.org/web/20100216151958/http://www.hiihtoliitto.fi/mitali-ym_tilastoja/olympia-ja_mm-mitalistit/ Finnish Skiers - Olympic and World Championship Results] {{in lang|fi}}
[https://ancexplorer.army.mil/publicwmv/#/arlington-national/search/results/1/CglBbGFrdWxwcGkSBU9sYXZp/ Arlington National Cemetery]

Category:1915 births

Category:1990 deaths

Category:People from Rovaniemi

Category:People from Oulu Province (Grand Duchy of Finland)

Category:Finnish emigrants to the United States

Category:Finnish male cross-country skiers

Category:Finnish military personnel of World War II

Category:United States Army officers

Category:FIS Nordic World Ski Championships medalists in cross-country skiing

Category:Knights of the Mannerheim Cross

Category:Burials at Arlington National Cemetery

Category:20th-century American musicians