Guinness World Record in Suomenlinna Sauna

HAAGA-HELIA has made a new Guinness World Record of having the most number of people from different nationalities in a sauna. The record was broken on November 7th with 76 different nationalities in the same sauna.

Suomenlinna Naval Academy’s sauna was filled with sauna goers from different countries in early November.  The objective – to have people from the most nationalities – was met beyond expectations: the new Guinness World Record is 76 nationalities in the same sauna at the same time. The participants were required to show their passport as proof of nationality.  The previous world record was 57 nationalities, which was set at Ritsumeikan Asian Pacific University in Japan in November 2008.

Historical evidence has shown that the world’s first wooden saunas were built in Finland around the 5th or 7th centuries. The word sauna is Finnish and refers to both the act of bathing in a sauna as well as the sauna structure itself.       

“With the record we wanted to highlight Finland’s role in sauna culture around the world. It is also interesting to note that the sauna has become such a global phenomenon," says HAAGA-HELIA’s Gerard Danford, who coordinated the event.   

HAAGA-HELIA has students from nearly 100 different nationalities. Another aim of the event was to showcase HAAGA-HELIA’s genuinely international learning environment. More than 90 % of the participants were HAAGA-HELIA students.

More information: Senior Lecturer Gerard L. Danford

Pictures from Sauna Challenge 7.11.2009

 More pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsheremetyeva/sets/72157622652532543/