Reijo PUIRAS

Reijo Puiras was born in Canada, but raised in Finland, where he took up cross-country skiing at a young age. His family returned to Canada in 1967 and settled in Northern Ontario, where Reijo became active in the regional skiing scene. In 1971 he came in second in the 15 km cross-country ski at the Canadian Junior Championships, alongside non-Olympians Darrell Frank and Esko Kalviainem, and in 1974 he joined the senior national team. Later that year he competed in the World Championships and, in 1976, represented Canada at the Olympic Games, where he was 56th among 69 entrants in the 30 kilometre event.

Puiras continued competing for several years, with his last major accomplishment being third place in the 1978 Canadian National Championships. By career he was involved in the construction business, but later became known for developing his private property in Thunder Bay into a world-class cross-country ski training center known as the Lappe Nordic Ski Centre. For his efforts in developing the sport, he was made a member of the Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame in 1993.