Sport is an important pillar for a healthy and satisfied life: It strengthens the heart and blood vessels, muscles and bones, as well as the immune system, thereby preventing health risks and contributing to physical well-being. It also has a positive effect on the mind by improving mood and concentration, and boosting self-confidence. Last but not least, sport helps to establish and maintain social contacts.
The family company LAPP is therefore committed to sport to promote the well-being of employees, strengthen cooperation and bring people together alongside their everyday work – all in the spirit of ONE LAPP. A particular sporting highlight at LAPP is the international LAPP football and volleyball tournament, which has been held at a different LAPP location around the world for 29 years. After a three-year pause due to the pandemic, it was held again in 2023: from 30 June to 2 July, 800 LAPP employees from 29 countries came together in Helsinki and experienced great sporting spirit on the pitch and a sense of togetherness off it.
Tournament day in the Bolt Arena with UEFA flair
On 30 June, Jyri Kontio, Vice President of the Nordic Cluster, hosted the welcome evening, which was organised according to the theme of midsummer magic. Finnish Kantele musician Lauri Schreck provided the right atmosphere with a Finnish show, followed by a DJ playing midsummer-inspired songs. Instead of the usual country-specific gift, LAPP decided this year to plant 800 trees in “LAPP ikimetsa”, a primeval forest in the municipality of Ylitornio in Finnish Lapland..
The next day was kick-off for the tournaments held at the Bolt Arena, the football stadium of Finland’s most successful football team, HJK Helsinki, which also hosts UEFA matches.
For the first time in the history of the LAPP tournament, mixed teams of men and women were permitted in both sports – football and volleyball. This year, 28 volleyball teams and 27 football teams competed against one another. In the final of the volleyball tournament, the CEAM Volley team from Italy prevailed 22:17 against High Voltage from the Czech Republic; in the football, the Stuttgart based LAPP HEADQUARTERS team beat the Czech Lions with 1:0. On the evening of the tournament, the Lapp family, together with Matthias, Andreas, Katharina and Josephine Lapp, honoured the participants and winners with medals and trophies.
Great sporting spirit and a sense of community
Nina Saile, Event Manager at Lapp Service GmbH, was part of the organising team. Her highlight of the tournament: “Every year, the joy of meeting colleagues from all over the world is the best experience. After Corona, this joy was even greater in Finland. It was good to see many dear colleagues again and to exchange ideas.“
Paula Lindelof at LAPP Finland was responsible for the organisation on site. For her, the event was an expression of ONE LAPP: “The opportunity to be the host of such an amazing event is a dream come true. It was a pleasure and honour for us to be able to welcome our colleagues from all around the world and to share parts of our culture and traditions with everyone.” “
Samantha Steller, purchaser at LAPP USA and volleyball player, said of her expectations of the tournament: “I had hoped for a relaxed and entertaining exchange with international colleagues – and that was fulfilled. It was nice to exchange ideas with people from international departments and to see that we all experience similar joys and problems, regardless of country and culture.“
Silvia Catalano, Key Account Manager in Sales at CEAM Cavi Speciali s.r.l., also took part as a volleyball player. For her, too, the feeling of togetherness at the tournament was paramount: “It certainly brought many people closer together, for example, a direct contact was established with managers. The climate of cooperation was strengthened and also the feeling that you can count on your colleagues at an international level.“
René Beitlich, Account Manager in Sales Germany at U.I. Lapp GmbH, attended as a football player (LAPP Headquarter). The shared sporting spirit was the motivation for him to take part: “My motivation is the big picture – ONE LAPP united in one place to have fun, without disregarding fair competition. Sport brings people together, across national and departmental boundaries. This was reflected in the mixed teams that were allowed to compete for the first time this year, and represented ‘togetherness’ more than ever before.“
Ewa Lopusiewicz, marketing employee at LAPP Poland, was on the pitch as a volleyball player. For them, the advantages of such a tournament are: “Firstly, the opportunity to see our colleagues with whom we normally only have contact online, secondly, the chance to experience some beautiful places up close that we have not yet seen, and thirdly, the feeling of belonging to a family – which is really important.”
The motto of the Sisu tournament is valid for LAPP beyond the sporting event: It stands for the tireless will to create something together with continuity, something that makes us smile. It means finding inner strength in everything you do and always giving your best – LAPP can fully identify with that.