Meet Veera Laiho!
Tell us about yourself!
I’m 26 years old and a registered nurse from Turku, Finland. Now I live in Gold Coast/Brisbane, Australia and enjoy the hot weather and playing ice hockey every day.
I have played ringette and ice hockey since I was a kid and my mom was always struggling to get me home from the outdoor rink. I started with ringette as my first choice and played ice hockey just for fun until 2014 when I swapped to ice hockey for good. I grew up at the rinks and I grew up with my teammates and thats why I love hockey—you are never alone.
WHAT MADE YOU WANT TO BE A WHL BRAND AMBASSADOR?
Ice hockey has given me so much and I hope that being by being a WHL ambassador I can maybe give something back and help women’s ice hockey to grow. I love what WHL represents and I’m so grateful for being a part of it.
WHAT ARE YOU MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO AS A #WHLAMBASSADOR?
I’m looking forward to expanding the women’s hockey passion and hopefully getting more girls and women to start playing hockey, no matter what age. I hope to be someone’s inspiration for getting on the ice for the first time and experiencing the hockey life. I love talking about hockey, so I can’t wait to get more friends who share the same love for hockey! You never have too many hockey friends in the world.
WHAT’S SOMETHING NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE KNOW ABOUT YOU?
I also love golf, floorball and driving with motorbikes! I still listen to my old team favorite song from 2008 before every game and I have many other small rituals before games.
IF YOU COULD SIT DOWN AND HAVE DINNER WITH ONE FEMALE HOCKEY PLAYER, WHO WOULD IT BE AND WHY?
I would love to have dinner with Noora Räty. She is amazing! She has made ice hockey her occupation and that’s not common in women’s hockey. Noora has played all over the world and in Finland she has also made it to the men’s second highest ice hockey league. I admire her passion for the sport.
WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE YOU’VE EVER BEEN GIVEN IN HOCKEY OR IN LIFE?
In hockey: My old coach used to say, “Always celly, even when you are not 100% sure if you scored because the ref is not sure either!” 😂
In life: My mom always keeps saying that you live only once and that has really stuck with me and that’s where I got the courage to move across the world to play ice hockey and live in Australia and now I’m living my dream.
WHAT’S YOUR DREAM FOR WOMEN’S HOCKEY?
My ultimate dream is that women’s ice hockey will some day be equal to men’s ice hockey, and actually that dream includes all sports. I found it extremely funny and sad at the same time when people say “Oh you play in the women’s league so you get paid for that?”
One of my dreams is to make ice hockey more affordable and available for everyone.
Want to be a #WHLAmbassador?
Get more details and apply here!
