Tanja Poutiainen, born 1980, is a alpine skier from Rovaniemi. In 1997 she became junior world champion in the slalom and took bronze in the Super-G. The same year she participated in her first World Cup slalom run.
Poutiainen got her real breakthrough to the world’s leading skiers during the season 2003/04, when she on home ground in Levi won her first World Cup slalom. She took a total of two World Cup silver medals (in slalom and giant slalom) and two World Championship bronze medals (in slalom and giant slalom) and an Olympic silver medal in giant slalom.
Poutiainen also played age specific football. She won three Finnish championships with Rovaniemi Football Club. In 2008 Poutiainen was awarded the prize for this year’s model athlete at the Norwegian Sports Gala.
