While we will continue to update this page, most up to date information will be found in the Facebook event: HLO 2024. You can also follow us on instagram (@ehms_ry) and get the news slightly faster.
General information
EHMS will host the tenth Helsinki Longsword Open on the 19th and 20th of January 2024. This year we will be hosting a total of four competitions:
- Open Longsword
- Underrepresented Genders’ and Women’s Longsword
- Open Messer
- Open Sword + Buckler
When a competition is full, signing up will get you on the wait list.
Rules and gear requirements
The Sword & Buckler tournament will be conducted on a “Bring your own sword” basis. The bucklers (specs) will be provided by the tournament organizers.
Swords for all of the other competitions will be provided by the tournament organizers. You are not allowed to use your own weapons in any of the tournaments besides Sword and Buckler.
The rules below are subject to change at any notice.
- Tournament Structure
- Rules for all weapons
- Additional rules for Open / WURG Longsword
- Additional rules for Open Sword + Buckler
- Equipment Requirements
There are no additional rules for Open Messer.
Schedule
Livestream
More info soon!
Venue info
The tournament will take place at Ruskeasuon liikuntapuisto. This is the same venue that has hosted the Helsinki Longsword Open the past several years. The address is Ratsastie 10, 00280 Helsinki. The venue can be reached by several bus lines (bus stop Tilkka) and the tram line 10. There is plenty of parking available. Parking is free, but restricted to 4 hours.
The venue café will be open during the tournament, and sells food, drinks, and quick snacks. The Tripla shopping mall, with many food options, is also only about 1km away.
Insurance
EHMS will not provide insurance for the event. We highly recommend getting a sports insurance that covers full contact martial arts in a competition setting. Note that Finland does not have a national HEMA association, which is something some insurers may ask about.
First aid
There will be first aid staff on site during the event.
Contact info
You can contact the organisers by email at hlo(at)ehms.fi or through the Facebook event page.
Payment and registration
Registration will open 11.09.2023 and stay open until 31.12.2023. Please register using the link at the bottom of this page!
The pricing of the event is as follows:
Open Longsword: 80 €
WURG Longsword: 40 €
Open Messer: 45 €
Open Sword & Buckler: 45 €
We will send bills per email based on your registration.
The registration will not be considered confirmed until payment has been received! The bill will have a due date 14 days from the date it is sent. The bills will be sent in batches, so don’t worry if you don’t receive yours right away. Note that if you neglect to pay the bill within a month of issue, you will be dropped from the roster. Please contact us if you have questions regarding billing.
We will not issue refunds after 31.12.2023 without a good reason!
All participants must be at least 18 years old.
We welcome spectators to the event for free!
Accommodation at the EHMS salle
Like previous years, it is possible to sleep at the EHMS salle in Sörnäinen the nights between Friday-Saturday and Saturday-Sunday. More information here
Do note that on Sunday, there is free sparring at the salle from 12 onwards. We recommend getting your sleeping gear out of the way before then.
Questions? Contact us at hlo(at)ehms.fi or post a question on the Facebook event page.
Please view the data privacy statement in English or in Finnish.
T-shirt
We also have a kickass t-shirt that you can order during registration!
Information about registration
Registration is now open on Hemagon! Note that you need to create a Hemagon account to register.
There is no automatic confirmation email – you can see your registration through your Hemagon profile. After registration but before payment, it will show up as Submitted; after payment, it will show as Approved, at which point your registration will be public on Hemagon.