Finland's Ski Team Seeks Exclusive Rights to Revolutionary Ski Innovation – Here's Why Negotiations Are Stalled

When Johanna Matintalo finished second in last March's Falun World Cup 10-kilometer (free technique) time trial, attention was drawn to the race's structure.

At the 7.7-kilometer mark, Matintalo was chasing the leader, Kerttu Niskanen, who had a 17-second lead, and by 9.1 kilometers, that lead had shrunk to just 13 seconds. However, at the finish line, the gap was only 4.2 seconds.

Niskanen's shrinking victory margin was partly attributed to her ski grip weakening toward the end of the race due to dirt and moisture accumulation.

On the other hand, Matintalo did not suffer from that issue at all—on the contrary—so there was an interest in her skis. Yle Urheilu reported last April on a closely guarded secret: the grip areas of the skis Matintalo chose for the competition were treated using a completely mechanical method developed by Kärkölä's Custom Ski company, without any chemical preparations.

Such a coating does not get dirty or wet, thus retaining its optimal properties throughout a long competition. This is an entirely new processing technique: it does not involve grinding, texturing, or patterning.

Strict Confidentiality Agreements

The invention, currently in the patent process, was kept under wraps. Typically, a skier in Matintalo's position would brag about their skis to the media, but the pride of Pöytyä said nothing about their equipment.

The entire support team remained silent about it as well. Krista Pärmäkoski, who placed ninth with skis treated by Custom Skin, also stayed quiet about the matter.

Last spring, about 20 members of Finland's team signed confidentiality agreements as a condition for the team to take the innovative skis they were testing in Lahti to Sweden for the first time.

This was a precautionary measure against industrial espionage common in the sports equipment world.

These skis were not on retail last season, nor are they now.

Custom Ski entrepreneur Pasi Vironen kept the newly treated ski bases strictly hidden from cameras when Yle Urheilu visited the company's production facilities in Kärkölä last spring. Photo: Antti Lähteenmäki / Yle

Matintalo commented on the issue to Yle Urheilu last April after receiving explicit permission from Custom Ski to do so. She said she felt a duty to help when the Finnish company is developing a product that could potentially give the national team an international competitive edge.

"Why not keep it in Finland?" she urged last spring.

“It would be great if we had such a lawful international competitive advantage for certain weather and conditions. Why wouldn’t we keep it in Finland, especially with the Trondheim World Championships coming up and not knowing what kind of weather we will have there?"

Tight-lipped Negotiations

The invention’s confidentiality has persisted. At the helm of the negotiations for Finland’s ski team was the Olympic Committee’s top-level sports expert and ski coach, Toni Roponen.

The team’s service manager Matti Haavisto admitted that the innovation offers a significant potential competitive advantage, especially in damp conditions. However, he preferred not to comment further since he was not a negotiator.

“If it was easy, it would have been concluded already,” Roponen indicated from Central Europe.

He emphasized that he became involved as a negotiator solely out of one motive. Roponen believes that Finnish skiers could gain substantial benefits from the innovation as early as the World Championships in Trondheim, expected to be held in conditions conducive to moisture due to the proximity of the Atlantic Ocean.

However, the challenging 50-kilometer final event in Norway will be held using free technique, not grip-enabled equipment.

“I wouldn’t be involved in this if I didn’t believe it could provide a significant competitive edge. I know a great deal about the details that affect the outcomes of ski competitions at the highest level, where skis are the most important,” Roponen says while laughing that he also appealed to the nationalism of the brothers at Custom Ski, whom he knows very well.

Concerns About Industrial Espionage

Roponen states that this is not merely a matter of the monetary amount that Custom Ski is asking for exclusive rights.

“Of course, if it were a million, things would resolve quickly. But there are also patent protection issues involved. It’s quite clear that nothing leaves their workshop until agreements are finalized. The concern over industrial espionage is entirely justified.”

The national team's waxing manager Heikki Tonteri told Yle Urheilu that if they want the Custom Skin innovation for the team before this season, time is running out.

The grip areas are retrofitted onto ready skis using a specially designed machine for any ski brand, but only one pair at a time.

Sweden's strong national team has also expressed interest in the Custom Skin base innovation. Photo: Tomi Hänninen / Chilipictures

If they wish to use this innovation even this season, the timeline is becoming critical. First, test skis would need to be sent for information to determine what type of skis each skier should provide for the best advantage.

"All of this takes surprisingly long time," Tonteri says.

Toni Roponen hasn't given up on negotiations yet.

“They have a product and a process ready. Things can happen within a week.”