Former world champion ski jumper Matti Nykanen jailed on suspicion of attempted homicide

Former world champion ski jumper Matti Nykanen jailed on suspicion of attempted homicide{mosimage}Former world champion ski jumper Matti Nykanen has been jailed in southern Finland on suspicion of having stabbed a man there. Nykanen’s wife, Mervi Tapola-Nykanen, was also jailed.

A court in Tampere, 110 miles north of Helsinki, ordered the couple jailed as suspects in the attempted homicide of an as-yet-unidentified 59-year-old man who was found at a summer cottage in Nokia, which is near Tampere. According to some news reports, the man is Nykanen’s friend.

The 41-year-old, a prominent figure in his home country, is one of the top ski jumpers of all time. During a career that spanned most of the 1980’s, he won 19 medals in world championship and Olympic events. His legal history includes convictions for domestic violence and drunk driving.

The Associated Press quoted Pasi Nieminen, Chief Inspector of the Nokia police, saying that the couple was drunk when arrested and that the victim was in stable condition in a hospital. ‘We don’t know exactly how long our preliminary investigation will take’ said Nieminen in an AP story, ‘But we have a pretty good idea of what happened.’