Aloituslistat

Aloituslistat is Finnish for starting lists, documents that organize participants in competitive events by indicating the order in which competitors will start. They are commonly used in events with multiple heats or rounds, such as track and field, swimming, cycling, rowing, or skiing, but can appear in other activities where a start sequence must be established.

The lists typically include the competitor’s name, nation or team, and start number, and in many cases also birth year. In timed or heat-based disciplines they specify heat number, lane assignment, seed time or entry time, and the scheduled start time. The information can be distributed as a paper schedule, a bulletin board notice, or a digital listing on an event portal.

Aloituslistat serve several functions: they help organizers allocate lanes and heats fairly using seeding principles, communicate the start order to athletes, coaches, officials, and spectators, and support timing systems and broadcast planning. They are usually prepared by event organizers or governing bodies and updated as entries change or scratches occur. Changes are common up to and during competition, requiring frequent updates to the start lists.

In Finnish sport administration, aloituslistat are a standard element of event logistics, contributing to transparency and smooth operation in multi-round competitions. Related concepts include start lists in other languages, heat sheets, and event timetables.