Vaeaetaeinen, 45, worked as a head coach in Finland between 2008 and 2010 before moving to Japan, where he worked with athletes including Noriaki Kasai and Ryoyu Kobayashi, during his time as coach of the Team Tsuchiya.

"Janne is extremely good in motivating athletes and leading them in training," said Lauri Kettunen of the Finnish Ski Association.

"Nowadays nobody can make it to the top in any discipline without hard work.

"Janne Happonen and Ryoyu Kobayashi are examples of the successful work of Janne Vaeaetainen as a coach".

Vaeaetaeinen said of his new appointment: "In our first talks, this idea seemed to be far away, as I left Finland already ten years ago. 

"But slowly I got interested in this position and in working with the Finnish team".

While Vaeaetaeinen will focus on working with the national team, his predecessor in the role Lauri Hakola will continue within the setup, with a role where he is responsible for the education of the coaches.

"We want to help the team develop in the best possible way and in these positions we can make the most out of the strengths of every coach," said Hakola, who coached the national side for two years.

"My strength is practical coaching and I can now focus on this more. 

"As head coach, Janne will also be responsible for the management of it all. 

"Of course, we will work closely together on all levels".