Toni Roponen enters his second season in 2021 as the Nordic head coach at the University of Denver.
In his first season, DU claimed four top-five finishes and a victory at the RMISA Championships in 2020. He guided the Pioneers to a full-team qualification at the NCAA Championships, where freshman Eveliina Piippo won the 5K freestyle.
Piippo earned First Team All-American honors in the 5K freestyle along with freshman Bernhard Flaschberger who was named a First Team All-American for finishing third in the 10K freestyle at the NCAA Championships.
The Pioneers earned five individual Nordic titles in Roponen’s first season at the helm.
Over the last 19 years, Roponen has been the personal coach for Matti Heikkinen and Riitta-Liisa Roponen, two members of the Finnish National Team who have combined for 10 medals at the World Championships and Olympic Games.
The Finland native has coached Riitta-Liisa Roponen, his wife, to five Olympic appearances from 2002-2018. Roponen has also served as a skiing, cycling, and biathlon analyst for the last nine years for Eurosport.
From 2002-05, Roponen was the head coach of the Finnish Biathlon team after spending three years as the country’s cross-country youth national team and B-National team coach.
Roponen’s previous experience in North America includes his time as the head coach of the Thunder Bay Training Center, a member of the Canadian Skiing Federation.
Prior to beginning his coaching career in 1989, Roponen was a competitive skier in Finland.
Roponen earned a bachelor’s degree and master’s degree in physical education from the University of Jyvaskyla in Finland, along with earning a level four coaching degree in endurance sport. He has two kids, his son Tommi and daughter Ida.
