'Shooting helped me heal': Vesa Jaervinen chases third Para trap world title

The same year a falling boulder crushed Vesa Jaervinen’s right leg and led to an above-the-knee amputation, he rose again to claim gold at Finland’s national Para trap championships.

Shooting had been part of his life long before 2009 – the year when the then 24-year-old lumberjack was out with a colleague cutting trees at a quarry construction site and everything changed.

“Just as I was moving up in the quarry, a large boulder fell on me. My right leg was crushed between two rocks,” Jaervinen, now 43, said.

“Luckily, my workmate noticed what had happened and called for help. I was taken by helicopter to the hospital, where I received the best possible treatment, but unfortunately the only option was to have my right leg amputated above the knee.”

Only months after leaving the hospital, Jaervinen started learning how to walk with a prosthetic leg.

Straight to the range

“As soon as I could walk again, I went with a friend to my home range at Pyhtää (Finland) to test how it felt to shoot with a prosthetic leg,” he said.

“I had a couple of good motivations to recover quickly and one of them was shooting. I have always loved clay shooting and luckily, it is a sport I could continue even after my amputation. 

It gave me much joy and something to look forward to.”

But adapting to shooting after an above-knee amputation was not easy.

“Shooting with two legs in very different. The balance is harder to maintain, and I have to shoot with straight legs since I can’t bend my knees. It is also quite different to shoot without sensing your leg touching the ground,” Jaervinen said.

“And it is not just about clay shooting. Everyday life is much harder – for example, walking is about 40% more difficult than for people with healthy legs.”

But the injury had somehow increased his drive to improve.

“After the amputation, something changed. I don’t know exactly why, but I started to practice more – working harder and with great purpose – to become a better shooter than I was before my accident,” Jaervinen said.

“Shooting also helped me to heal because it gave me something to go after and improve myself.”

🔥 Locked. Loaded. One month to go! 🔥

Brno 2025 Para Trap World Championships 🇨🇿
The world’s best take aim 13–14 Sept in Czechia.

All you need to know 👉 https://t.co/AZHdLjf34u#ParaTrap #Brno2025 #ShootingParaSport #ShootingSports @issf_official pic.twitter.com/C1ftGMKOUj

— Shooting Para Sport (@ShootingPara) August 13, 2025

Junior success

Growing up at the Pyhtää trap range in the Kymenlaakso region in southeastern Finland – just 10 km from his home – he had been training different trap disciplines with his father since he was 15.

“My first Finnish championship was in 2001, and I won my first gold right away in junior category,” Jaervinen said.

Shortly after his junior triumph, he competed in senior competitions. After the injury, it was natural for him to also continue competing against non-Para athletes.

“I have competed in the men's category right from the start, because I want to challenge myself,” said Jaervinen whose best results against able-bodied shooters include two Finnish championship fourth places, a silver medal at the Nordic Championships in Oslo, Norway in 2018, and a mixed team trap gold with Satu Pylkkaenen (FIN) in the same competition.

Golden beginnings

In Para trap, Jaervinen set a world record of 118/125 in Lonato, Italy, in 2017. One year later, he returned to the Trap Concaverde venue for the inaugural World Shooting Para Sport (WSPS) Para Trap Championships and claimed the gold.

“We had a training camp at Lonato that same year and I had a feeling that ‘when I come back here, I will win’ – and in a way, that feeling began to come true,” he said.

“It was a great feeling to win the first ever Para trap world championships gold medal, especially because I was in total control of my feelings during that final.”

The World Championships in 2021 also took place at the iconic northern-Italian shooting range by the Garda Lake, but then, Jaervinen had to settle for a silver. 

He, however, did not have to wait long before returning to the top of the podium. In Al Ain, United Arab Emirates, in 2022, he became a world champion for the second time.

“It was an even better feeling than the first time, because I think it is harder to win two times,” said Jaervinen, who also sees his first contract with Italian shotgun manufacturer Perazzi as a “big milestone” of his career.

Jaervinen credits the early years of training with his father as well as his mental strength as keys to becoming one of the best PT2 class shooters in the world.

“When I was little, me and my dad used to throw stones on different targets – for example plastic canisters placed at different distances – and see who could hit them first. So, I have been practising this hand-eye coordination all my life,” Jaervinen said. 

“I have also used a mental coach and tried to learn how to control my emotions and feelings during competitions. Shooting is mostly a mental game against yourself, so that is my focus.”

Imagen

Demanding sport

But life on the world circuit comes at a high cost and Jaervinen sees the lack of funding as his biggest obstacle to achieving greater success.

“This is a very expensive sport, especially here in Finland because of the long winters. This means we will have to travel to somewhere warmer to be able to shoot during the winter months,” he said.

“And because Para trap isn’t a Paralympic sport, yet, we will have to pay most of the expenses ourselves.”

He finished in third place at the world championships in Granada, Spain, last year to earn his fourth world championships medal, having missed the podium in Lima, Peru, in 2023. Ahead of September’s 2025 world championships in Brno, Czechia, however, Jaervinen hopes to upgrade his bronze to a more precious metal.

 “Of course, my goal is to win my third world championships gold medal there, but for sure it is going to be difficult,” Jaervinen said, naming one of the home hopes as a main contender to the title.

“I think Miroslav Lidinsky (CZE) could be a strong shooter. He has shot very good scores, and the home soil could be a strong boost for him.”

Giving back

Away from competition, Jaervinen is on a mission that stretches far beyond medals and glory. He is campaigning for blood donations – inspired by the transfusions that saved his life following the accident 16 years ago. 

He wants to donate as much blood as was needed to keep him alive after he was rushed to a hospital in Helsinki by helicopter after firefighters and rescue personnel had managed to lift the boulder off his lower limb. He is also using social media to raise awareness and inspire others to follow his example.

“At the hospital I was losing a lot of blood and made a promise to myself that I would give back the same amount," he said. 

“People should think more about how they can help others. If someone would not have donated blood I would not be here anymore, so I want to help someone else in return.”