Ecoaims’ founder, Ilmo Kurvinen, trained as a carpenter in his youth. However, he never actually worked in the field, as he entered military service after graduating in the 1970s. He continued working for the Finnish Defence Forces and at the same time started working as a masseur. During his time in the Defence Forces, Ilmo worked alongside highly successful biathlete Heikki Ikola. They became friends, and as a result Ilmo began working as a masseur for the Finnish national biathlon team in 1977.

That same year, biathlon underwent a major rule change. The hunting rifles previously used in the sport were banned and replaced with small-bore rifles. With hunting rifles, athletes had mainly shot at paper targets. Due to the rule change, new types of targets were also needed. Development work began in Finland, and in 1978 Finnish-made targets were tested at a national team training camp. However, they did not satisfy the team—or Ilmo.

Ilmo decided to take action and began developing new targets himself. He had promised to deliver better targets for the following weekend’s training camp in Vuokatti. Together with Aatos Utriainen, he produced a target that was ultimately tested there. The target was small, but it worked. At that stage, it was only possible to fire one shot at the target. When development began on a five-target system, there were initially many problems, but once the right solutions were found, the system started to function. As a result, Ilmo and Aatos founded a company together called General Partnership E. A. Utriainen. The targets were originally developed in Utriainen’s garage.

At that time, the world of biathlon targets was going through a “wild” phase. All kinds of materials were tested, including glass. At times, athletes even shot at balloons in World Cup competitions. In 1980, however, the International Biathlon Union (IBU) decided to bring order to the market, and for the first time rules were established for targets. These rules were ultimately based on the targets developed by Ilmo, as the sport’s governing bodies were so impressed by the innovations of E. A. Utriainen. The company made its first sales of targets in 1981. Ilmo’s and Aatos’s targets were first used in international competitions in 1983. That same year, Ilmo left his position in the Defence Forces and became a full-time serial entrepreneur. In addition to target development, his business activities included physiotherapy as well as track and field maintenance. This led to a new company name: Ylämyllyn Latu ja Kenttä.

A.E. Utriainen (left) with Ilmo Kurvinen (right) at the beginning of their entrepreneurial journey (1970s).

Second-generation entrepreneurs. Ecoaims Oy owners Mika & Marko Kurvinen work as entrepreneurs alongside their father, Ilmo Kurvinen. Childhood picture from the family archive.

Target systems were continuously sold to new countries, and Ilmo developed the technology relentlessly. He claimed that they could create electronic biathlon targets for the 1988 Calgary Olympic Games, but no one believed him. In the end, his developed targets were used six years later at the Lillehammer Olympics in 1994, marking the company’s first appearance at the Olympic Games. The company’s name was changed to Kurvinen Biathlon Finland Oy when Ilmo acquired the name from the Finnish Biathlon Federation. After the electrification that began in Lillehammer, Ilmo started to think: what if not only the targets, but also the rifles were electronic? This led to the founding of Ecoaims Oy alongside Suomen Biathlon Oy.

In late winter of 1996, Ilmo attended the Military World Championships in Sodankylä. While sitting in a sauna with a group of officers, he stated that by the following autumn he would have a rifle that required no bullets. Everyone laughed and did not believe him. That autumn, he returned to show them the finished rifle — and no one laughed anymore. The following winter, at the Polar Cup biathlon competition in Sodankylä, Ecoaims’ electronic rifle and targets were in use.

The prototype of the first Eco weapon (1990s)