Hannu-Pekka Hänninen

Who is Hannu-Pekka Hänninen?

Hannu-Pekka "Hoopi" Hänninen is a Finnish sports commentator who works for Finland's National Broadcasting Company YLE. He works both as the real-time play-by-play commentator and the sporstreader in YLE's sports news Urheiluruutu. His career as a sportscaster started in 1977. Before that he had a short spell in entertainment staff in radio. He has telecommunications mechanic's education.

Hänninen is known as a multi-skilled sportscaster who can commentate on almost every sport. Nowadays he usually commentates only football, ski jumping and Nordic combined. In the 1990s he also commentated very much on athletics, usually with Kari Hiltunen. Among others he commentated the Kimmo Kinnunen's World Championship winning javelin throw in 1991 Tokyo, Sari Essayah's World Championship winning 10 km walk in 1993 Stuttgart and Aki Parviainen's World Championship winning javelin throw in 1999 Sevilla. He has also commentated on every Olympic Games in television since 1984 Los Angeles. One of his main moments in Olympic games is the commentation of Matti Nykänen's gold winning jump in the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary. He has also been the main commentator of swimming in YLE for long time.