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IG Online's tradition of holiday-related features continues with this profile on Kasper Holopainen, the 2012 Finnish national all-around champion and Northern European all-around bronze medalist, who reflects on his 2012 successes despite knee problems.

"It feels excellent, because I've had a lot of trouble with my knee," said the 19-year-old Holopianen, who trains under coach Timo Holopainen (no relation) at the Voimisteluseura VSH club in Helsinki. "It's been bothering me for the past year but I had a lot of trouble with it this fall. I had knee surgery a few weeks ago, but still, I could compete. I had competitions for five or six weekends in a row."

Kasper Holopainen (Finland)

Holopainen said he his victory at October's Finnish championships, his final meet of 2012, capped a year that tested his knee as well as his determination.

"At Finnish nationals my knee hurt so much during warm-up that I was thinking of doing only three or four apparatuses," he said. "But I made up my mind to do all-around. I did floor and vault a little easier than usual, but everything else was OK."

Holopainen said his relative youth did not intimidate him at the Northern Europeans in Glasgow in October, where he placed third all-around behind gold medalist Helge Vammen of Denmark (age 26) and silver medalist Clinton Purnell of Wales (age 23).

"I don't put much pressure on myself," he said. "I just do what I can and hope everything will be OK. I'm not very scared of competing. I don't think about the other guys. I just do my own thing."

Holopainen started gymnastics with his brother, who quit the sport at age 13 and began playing ice hockey. Kasper was coached by Samir Daruish at the club for seven years, and began training under Timo Holopainen in 2009.

Holopainen's goal is to qualify for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, and thereby inspire future generations of Finnish gymnasts.

"We haven't had a lot of success," he said. "It would be nice to show the young gymnasts that we can still do it. That's why I'm trying to get to the 2016 Olympic Games, so that we will get more gymnasts. At the moment the national team is very small, and we have only a few elite gymnasts from whom to choose for competitions."

Although the Finnish team has not factored in major international competitions recently, Holopainen is confident that it is progressing.

"We're on a good track," he said. "We're concentrating more on getting to the Olympics, and we have strong all-around gymnasts, which is important because it's very hard for specialists to make it. We're trying to get three or four good all-around gymnasts for the next world championships (in fall 2013), where we can (start to) qualify for the Olympic Games. I think that, if we have four strong all-around gymnasts, it will be much easier to get there."

Holopainen said he looks forward to a two-week holiday break from gymnastics, during which he will spend time with family and friends in Helsinki.

"Usually we just stay home," he said. "If we have time, we visit our grandparents, who live about 400 kilometers away, My mother has five brothers and five sisters, and usually it's very crowded when everybody goes there. We go there every few years, but usually we just stay home and relax. For the past couple of years, we have gone skiing in the Laplands, with a group of gymnasts. This year we're not going."

Holopainen said he has not made a New Year's resolution since he was a young child, but he has specific gymnastics goals for 2013.

"I'll try to get my knee as good as possible and get the same scores as I did this fall, and even better," he told IG. "The main competition is the European Championships (in April), where I hope to make the all-around final. If my knee is fine, I can train for that, so it will be possible."

Read more on IG's recent visit to Helsinki in the January/February 2013 issue of International Gymnast magazine. To subscribe or order back issues, click here.

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IG Online continues its annual tradition of holiday-themed features on gymnasts from around the world as they reflect on 2012 and prepare for 2013. In today's spotlight: Canadian gymnast Kaitlyn Hofland, who won the bronze medal on balance beam at this month's World Cup in Glasgow.

Kaitlyn Hofland (Canada)

"The competition was an amazing experience and certainly gave me confidence for the new season," said Hofland, who also placed seventh on vault, tied for seventh on floor exercise, and placed eighth all-around and on uneven bars in Glasgow. "It made me realize that my skill level on some of events, bars and beam, is where it needs to be in order to compete internationally. The way I handled my routines on each event under the pressure created by the big names also gives me confidence because I know that ability will continue to improve with practice."

Born March 28, 1996, in Brampton, Ont., Hofland trains at Futures Gymnastics in Mississauga, Ont. Her coaches are Lisa Cowan (balance beam and floor exercise), Lawson Hamer (vault, uneven bars and floor exercise) and Lorne Bobkin (vault uneven bars and floor exercise).

Earlier this year Hofland placed fifth all-around at the Elite Canada competition in February, second all-around in the Senior Cup division at the Gymnix International in Montreal in March, and 12th all-around in the Master division at the Elite Gym Massilia competition in Marseille, France, in November.

Hofland said she was pleased with her ability to quickly regroup in Glasgow after she fell from uneven bars when she mistimed a pirouette to release combination.

"I was quite excited before bars because I knew it is a strong event for me if I hit, and I was not doubting that I could hit, so the fall certainly caught me off guard," she said. "As frustrating as the fall was, beam was next and I knew it was an opportunity for redemption. I used my frustration from bars to motivate me instead of negatively impacting the rest of my meet."

Hofland said her experience in Glasgow should help her as she tries to earn a spot on the Canadian team for next year's World Championships in Antwerp and other competitions.

"I need to use what I learned about my competitive ability in Glasgow to help me handle pressure at upcoming meets, as well as an increased difficulty on floor and vault, which is already in the works," she said.

The holiday season will be eventful but relaxing for the Hofland family in their Georgetown, Ont., residence, she said.

"My family is usually very busy so the holidays will be a nice chance to spend some quality time together at home," she said. "One of my favorite family traditions at Christmastime is going to see the National Ballet of Canada's production of The Nutcracker."

Hofland is clear on her goals for 2013.

"My New Year's resolution outside the gym is to find time to get my driver's license!" she told IG. "Inside the gym I intend to increase my difficulty on floor and improve my consistency in competition."