Hello everyone, I am Jessi, agility judge and mother of three children from Lohja, Finland. My family includes my childrens, more or less dogs and a cat - Javier from Spain.

I myself started agility as a teenager and competed quite actively with my own dogs and a few from other homes as well. Just before I became a judge in 2016 I had almost a competing frenzy 😁. I judge both in Finland and abroad. I am happy to be part of this amazing group organizing this cool event. I believe we have the best people for this event and luckily I can call them all my friends.

A warm welcome to Finland to competitors from all over the world! We have a beautiful country with a lot to see and do. I guarantee you will enjoy the flowing courses of our world class judges! I'm super proud of our crew and I'm really looking forward to seeing all my old and new friends in Lohja. I just know that we will have an amazing week, competing and partying. See you soon!

Hi! My name is Heidi Hendrell and I’m helping with the marketing and branding of this awesome event. I’m also the owner of the name brand #joyofdogsports and will bring that joy with me to this Midsummer Dogs Sports Festival as well. I’m working daily with innovation for our premium dog sports products and also leading a large network and service for dog sports enthusiasts in Finland (SporttiRakki).

I have had dogs for over 20 years, both working and having fun with them. Currently I have two dogs: Australian Shepherd Jekku and Labrador Vainu and hopefully a new puppy soon.

I believe that the midsummer 2024 will be something many of us will cherish as the greatest summer memory ever.

Hopefully you will come and enjoy this with us! 

My name is Einari Pekkala. I am the chairman of the largest Finnish agility club, Tampereen Seudun Koirakerho ry. I am active in the Finnish Agility Association and several other volunteer organisations supporting Finnish agility. I was also part of the JOAWC 2022 crew.

I started my agility career in 2011. I compete actively with my Jackrussellterriers and most recently with a Pyrenean Shepherd “Papu”. I am currently on path to become an Agility Judge, and hopefully will graduate in the summer 2023.

When Jessi approached me about organizing something big in 2024, I was immediately intrigued and excited. She is a driving force in Finnish agility so I knew this would be something fun. 

A couple of months later things started to materialize and we now have a superb location, fantastic judges and a motivated inner circle who are anxious to get started!

So welcome everyone! Enjoy the Finnish summer and have a super fun weekend in 2024, and hopefully - in the years and years to come!

Ville Liukka

ville@agifest.fi

Mika "Yltsi" Yliluoma

yltsi@agifest.fi

Hello! My name is Laura Karppinen. I have been involved more or less (mostly more) in agility since 2015. I train and compete actively with my two Jackrussellterriers and I’m the member of the competition team and the board in my home club Tampereen Seudun Koirakerho ry. I’m also actively involved in the Finnish Agility Association. 

I have been arranging a lot of competitions including for example Finland’s AWC tryouts 2022 and the very first Junior World Championships (JOAWC) held in Vantaa in summer 2022!

When I hear or see something interesting related to agility I have a “bad habit” to stick my nose to it 😀. And I think that is what happened with the Midsummer Dogsport Festival! I’m responsible for finance (since in my day job I play with the numbers) but knowing myself will do a lot of other things as well!

I hope to see a lot of agility people in Midsummer 2024 in Lohja! This event will be great! And if you have never been in Finland, Midsummer is most likely the best time to visit! So there is no excuse not to attend! 

Tiina Leinonen

tiina@agifest.fi

My name is Marko Kivihalme and i´m “the local” force in our team. I represent local agility club Länsi Uudenmaan agilityharrastajat and our hall is just 10 minutes from Kisakallio event place. I´m an active competitor, coach and an agility judge. I started my agility career over ten years ago and nowadays compete in large class with two bordercollies. We have altogether five of them at home. 

Jessi asked me to join this group of organizers to give that local knowledge and contacts, I´m also active in municipal services so I thought that maybe I can give my input on this awesome new event. I´m super thrilled about this event and hope you all feel the same. 

Iida Vakkuri

iida@agifest.fi