I am slowly getting used to Rein F. Deer's endless rants about the cultural or even genetic superiority of the Finno-Scandinavians (Voice from the North, 10-16 April). After all, they are few and have proven to be rather harmless, especially when provided with certain amounts of cheap booze and marinated herring. But he should not be over-doing his self-righteousness: a Finnish athletic hero of the 1970s, Lasse Viren (below), is now frequently identified as an ‘early adapter' of blood doping. Obviously, we're all human, no matter the latitude of the place where our cradle stood.
From
Ronald Vopel
Brussels
