22. This Finn Might Have Been More Lethal Than Lady Death
Lethal as Lyudmila Pavlichenko was, she might not have been as lethal as one of her country’s adversaries, Finnish sniper Simo Hayha (1905 – 2002) who ran up a huge score against the Red Army. Nicknamed the “White Death”, Hayha is commonly credited with killing 505 Soviet soldiers during the Winter War of 1939 – 1940, a David vs Goliath fight that pitted tiny Finland against her giant neighbor. It should be noted, however, only 259 of those kills were confirmed, while Pavlichenko had 309 confirmed sniper kills.
Hayha was born in an agricultural community, and from early childhood, was accustomed to hard work on the farm. He had a lifelong passion for rifles, entered and won numerous marksmanship competitions, and his home was full of trophies. Hayha got an early start in the skills of the hunt, and first learned how to stalk and bring down the game in the Finnish wilderness when he was still a child. Thus, he picked up traits of toughness, patience, and accurate shooting that came in handy and served him well when he went to war.