Legendary Estonian athletics coach Leonard Soom dies at 79
On Thursday, August 20, longtime athletics coach Leonard Soom died at the age of 79, the Estonian Athletics Association announced.
The Estonian Athletics Association has announced that legendary coach Leonard Soom died on Thursday, August 20, at the age of 79.
Soom took up sports at the Vastseliina boarding school on the advice of Mart Kadai, later beginning systematic athletics training at the Vaeküla boarding school under coach Vello Varik. He graduated from the Vaeküla boarding school in 1966 and completed studies in health education at Tallinn Pedagogical University in 1994.
Extensive career in sport and education
Soom served on the coaching council of the Estonian Athletics Association as a sprint coach and senior coach, on the board of the School Sports Union, and on the presidium of the Jõud athletics section. He was the founder and head of the Järva County Sports Union (1994, 1996, 1998–2000), chairman of the Järvala sports club (from 1991), and a member of the Estonian Olympic Committee's commission for awarding athletics coaching qualifications (2005–2017).
He worked as a coach in Vaeküla (1968–1970), Paide (1970–1986), Kabala (1986–1988) and Türi (from 1988), and served as director of the Paide Sports School and chairman of the Paide district Jõud council, director of the eight-year school in Kabala (1986–88) and of Türi's second secondary school (1989–91), deputy head of the Järva County education department (1991–1994), and finance director of the Järva police prefecture (1994–1995). From 1997 to 2004 he was a property manager and coach at Edelaraudtee, from 2004 to 2009 sports director and coach at Türi Economics Gymnasium, and from 2009 a coach with the Türi sports club union, holding the seventh coaching qualification level as of 2009.
Among his best-known students are Rutti Luksepp, Anne Sookael, Deivi and Donald Jäerats, Gunnar Kirsipuu, Indrek Vahtra, Rait Männik, Jaanus Suvi, Tarmo Saar, and Grit and Grete Šadeiko.
In 2006 Soom was awarded a medal of merit for Järva County, in 2010 he received the Järva County lifetime achievement award in sport, and in 2024 he was named an honorary citizen of Türi parish.
