Finland has never hosted the Winter Olympics, while Helsinki hosted the Summer Games in 1956. Kyynarainen had no qualms with sharing his thoughts on the Olympic flame returning to Finland soon, which he suggests are not a pipe dream.
"Yes, I think Finland should apply to host the Winter Olympics," he told Etela-Suomen Sanomat. "This is not just a rumour or a private thought - there have already been various discussions about the matter in serious circles."
Following Milan-Cortina 2026, the next Winter Games will be in the French Alps in 2030, before heading to Utah in 2034. Therefore, the earliest Finland could host would be 2038. So far, only Switzerland has put forward a confirmed bid for the event in 12 years time.
Lahti will be hosting the next leg of the FIS Cross-Country Skiing World Cup this coming weekend (7-8 March) and has been chosen to host the 2029 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships. The city's mayor believes Lahti should be one of the main hosts, should Finland put themselves forward.
"The city of Lahti would of course play a key role in the project, because our city has long been one of the world's most progressive centres for traditional winter sports."
With venues spread across Northern Italy last month, and across various cities and resorts in France in 2030, the Winter Games is moving into an era where one city - or even one country - is not expected to host every sport.
The speed skating events in 2030 could yet take place in Italy or the Netherlands, and that geographic spread could improve Lahti's chances of being considered, rather than hindering them - according to Kyynarainen, some sports could be held in arenas in Helsinki or Tampere.
"Finland would be able to organise all competition events except for sledding and alpine sports. The location for speed skating would still need to be considered, but in any case, there are already some arena projects underway in southern Finland," the mayor admitted.
As for the sledding and alpine skiing, Finland is rumoured to be turning to 1994 host Lillehammer in Norway, as they did for their ultimately unsuccessful joint bid for the 2006 games.