JARI EO2022 JUDGE

My name is Jari Suomalainen. I´m 49-year-old agilityjudge from Finland. I became international FCI- judge in 2013. Recently, I have judged in national championships in Finland two times and once in Sweden. I also have judged AWC/EO-tryouts in Sweden, and in Hungary and of course in Finland. I have judged in 11 different countries.

I started agility in 1995 with my dalmatians. Some of you may remember me when I competed with kooikerhondje Frodo. In our long career we won both individual and team competition in AWC (2006), EO (2009), Nordic championships (individuals two times in a row, 2010 and 2011) and Finnish championships (individuals four times in a row 2008-2011). Nowadays I don´t compete at this high level, because my hip and leg were operated seven years ago, and after that I can´t run agility. But that leaves me more time for judging.

When I was a competitor I loved full speed and accuracy. When I plan my courses I aim to these elements.
Also, I want that my courses are always safe even for the fastest dog. I want to offer fair and fluent line for the dog, and if the handler makes a good course-plan she/he can get a good and smooth line also. My courses seem to be quite easy on the paper, but because of the speed they usually are not so easy. You can find my courses (2013-2020) in my blog (http://kooijari.blogspot.fi) or in my Facebook profile (agilitycourses 2021).

It is a great honor to be nominated to judge in European Open 2022. I’m looking forward to see lots of fantastic runs and great emotions during the competition. I wish all participants good luck – enjoy the competition!