was exposed in 1939, he fled to Estonia and found that the Soviet Union had occupied the country. According to his own story, he fled back to Finland in a rowing boat. Niska fought in Laatokka during the Winter War. There is no clear knowledge of what he did during the Continuation War. In the mid-1940s Niska tried to finance the building of a new boat by giving interviews about his life – he needed the money and knew he could afford to ask. In 1951 Niska went through surgery in Antwerp but did not pay the bill – he was in serious debt in that time. In 1953 he was diagnosed with brain tumor and lost his speech and power of movement. He died on 28 May 1954. Publications He wrote two books, Yli vihreän rajan (Over the green border) and Mina äventyr (My adventures). One biography is available, Kari Kallonen's Algoth Niska - Salakuljettajien kuningas (Algoth Niska - King of Smugglers) Revontuli 2000. References 1888 births 1954 deaths Sportspeople from Vyborg People from Viipuri Province (Grand Duchy of Finland) Smugglers Finnish footballers Association football forwards Footballers at the 1912 Summer Olympics Olympic footballers of Finland Finland international footballers The Holocaust in the Netherlands The Holocaust in Estonia Finnish people of World War II Refugees in Finland Finnish exiles