The brightest sport star of Juva was Kalevi Hämäläinen.

Kalevi Hämäläinen was a cross-country skier whose career was colored both by great triumphs and crushing disappointments. Forest technician Kalevi Nikolai Hämäläinen was born December 13th, 1932, in Juva. His wins include World’s championship in 30 km skiathlon in 1958, 50 km skiathlon Olympic gold medal in Squaw Valley in 1960, and two Finnish championships, one in 30 km and one in 50 km skiathlon. In addition, Hämäläinen has succeeded both nationally and internationally in many other competitions.

After Kalevi’s death in 2005, the thoughts about remembering the skiing champion in some way did finally take shape in a form of a memorial. Thus, the revealing ceremony of the statue was held August 21st, 2010 in Puistola, Juva. In 2010 it had been 50 years since Hämäläinen’s Olympic win in Squaw Valley.