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SALT LAKE CITY — Lauri Markkanen got some welcomed news Thursday — and a new trophy, too.
The All-Star forward was named the Finnish Sports Athlete of the Year at the Finnish Sports Gala on Thursday, where he became the first basketball player to win the award.
"This award means a lot to me," he said in a video at the Finnish Sports Gala. "As the first basketball player to achieve this, I have tried to clear a path and set an example. You can achieve great things with passion. Great things happen when you keep practicing."
Markkanen received 1,998 votes and 126 first-place votes. Pole vaulter Wilma Murto was second in the voting with 1,879 votes and 48 first-place place, while rally driver Kalle Rovanperä was third with 1,645 votes and 29 first-place votes.
Along with the trophy, Markkanen received a baton that gets passed down each year, along with a note from the previous winner.
"Being on the winners list means a lot to me," Markkanen said.
Markkanen's parents were present at the gala, and his mother, Riika, told a story of when a young Lauri practiced for eight hours in the rain at his grandparents' cottage. His grandfather, meanwhile, wanted to teach him how to heat a sauna; the sauna never got heated. The basketball thing ended up going pretty well, though.
"I think it is necessary to emphasize his enormous will to practice since he was a little boy," Riikka Markkanen said.
Congratulations @MarkkanenLauri on winning Finland's Athlete of the Year🇫🇮💙
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) January 11, 2024
Lauri is the first basketball player to ever receive this award!
Fun fact: each year the baton is handed down from the previous winner featured with a note for the newest recipient. pic.twitter.com/OlGzb5wknd
Markkanen was named an All-Star in 2023 and won the NBA Most Improved Player award, as well during a breakout season that has continued into his second year with the Jazz.
Appropriately enough, the award comes at a time when Markkanen is playing his best basketball of the season. He's averaging 24.2 points and 9.1 rebounds over his last 10 games. Behind Markkanen's play, the Jazz have won nine of its last 11 contests.
"I'm really happy for him," Jazz coach Will Hardy said. "Their country is very proud of Lauri and they should be. We're very proud of Lauri. He's had a heck of a last 15, 16 months. ... I'm just really pleased with how he handles himself every day. He's the same person he was when he got here at the beginning of last year in terms of his humility and how he carries himself every day.
"I know this morning, getting that award meant a lot to him. It was cool to be here to see it and share that moment with him a little bit. Next, I've got to try to figure out a way to get to Finland."
