Atik İsmail

Atik Ismail was born to a Tatar family in Munkkiniemi, Helsinki. He and his twin brother Adil Ismail were named after Turkish wrestlers Celal Atik and Adil Atan. His brother is also a former footballer. Children of Ismail are Can Heikkonen (b. 1982), twins Pele and Ali Koljonen (s. 1988) and Maria Koljonen (s. 1989). Sons Ali and Pele have also played football. For decades Ismail suffered from alcoholism. He sobered completely in 1990 and has since worked with helping fellow recovering addicts. According to Ismail, his alcohol addiction switched to a gambling problem and he has had difficulty paying his debts from his small pension. In addition to sports, Ismail has published his poetry, worked as a nurse and been involved in politics. He was a candidate to the European Parliament in the elections of 1999 (Green League) and 2009 (Left Alliance). The Finnish press remembers Atik Ismail as a ”legendary footballer”, but also as someone who partly wasted his potential due to his alcoholism.