Jalkapalloa ja kuvataidetta : Pentti Veroma (1903-1979)

Abstract

Pentti Veroma (b. Weckman) was born in Turku, the old capital of Finland in 1903. He has become known to the next generations especially in his home town as a painter. In his youth, he practiced athletics in Paavo Nurmi’s own sport club Turun Urheiluliitto (Turku Sports Union). Later Veroma started to play football in the team of Turun Urheiluliitto. In the early 1920s, the language question was a significant factor in the football, also in Turku. Pentti Veroma was in 1922 one of the founders of Turun Palloseura (Turku Football Club). Later one of the most prominent football clubs in Finland. The team of Turun Palloseura was recruited from the players of the Turun Riento and Turun Urheiluliitto. In autumn 1922, Veroma was chosen for Turun Palloseura’s team in the club’s first game. In the game Finnish speakers’ club won the local Swedish speakers’ team ÅIFK which was one of the leading football clubs in Finland at the time. In the years 1922–1934 Pentti Veroma played altogether 187 matches in the first team of Turun Palloseura and was known as the quickest defender in the country. Veroma has been considered in the history of the club one of the three great players of the club in the 1920s together with Vieno Nikander and Yrjö Tuomi. During Veroma’s active career Turun Palloseura won the Finnish championship in 1928. Veroma was a goldsmith by his original profession. In addition to his work, he studied in the drawing school of Turku from which he graduated in 1925. During WWI and WWII (also later) he was active in artists’ association in the city. After having returned from war time military service 1943, Veroma decided to give up the profession of goldsmith and continue as full-time artist. Veroma became very popular in Turku as a landscape painter. From the 1950s on, he began to paint abstract work in addition to the more traditional painting.