Finland is known for snowy winters, reindeers, foreats, and swamps. Swamps stretch across the countryside as far as the eye can see. Once a year, the town of Hyrynsalmi, about 650 kilometer north of Helsinki,hosts a very unusual sports event: the World Swamp Soccer Championship. This major spectacle attracts some 5000 participants from a number of countries. the play soccer in the knee - deep mud,and often there is more wading and crawling than actual kicking of the ball.the game lasts for two periods of 25 minutes each in a marked soccer field that look more like a pig pen. shirts soon become dirty rage.