NELLI PORMEISTER

Sports enthusiast with diverse management experience

I have extensive experience in the retail and service sector – starting as a customer service representative and advancing to the executive management of a large company. Today, I work as an entrepreneur.
Professionally, I am characterised by solution orientation, consistency, efficiency, creativity, and a passion for challenge and resilience.
I hold a BSc in Logistics (2006), an MBA in Business Management (2013), and an MSc in Digital Transformation (2024) – a strong believer in continuous development and lifelong learning.
Sports enthusiast: mainly runner, triathlete, golfer, tennis player, snowboarder.
Happy wife and mother of two teenagers.

FAVORITE SPORTS

Running - anywhere, anytime, all year round
Triathlon - still exciting and challenging
Strength training - essential at my age
Golf - great relaxation in nature, especially with my husband
Snowboarding - an annual favourite when travelling with my teenagers.

First half marathon under 2 hours - autumn 2014
Epic Tipust Topini runs, especially in 2024 together with my son
Representing EGCC golf club in women’s competitions
First full marathon (missed the finish by just 150 m!), autumn 2015
First full-distance triathlon – Ironman Tallinn and the red carpet, autumn 2024

GREATEST SPORTS EXPERIENCES

JOURNEY OF NELLI

Today it feels almost unbelievable even to myself, but I haven’t been athletic all my life. From late adolescence until the age of 30 I was rather inactive, until a spontaneous decision to join a Facebook challenge organised by a group of strangers changed my life. From that point on there was no turning back, especially as I have since explored in depth the scientific background of what sport gives to people.

The positive impact of sport and active movement on people (both physically and mentally, from wellbeing to cognitive capacity) has become my inner mission, which is why SportMoves was born together with others who share the same vision.

A look back on how sport once again became Nelli’s indispensable everyday companion.

As a child, I spent my summers in the countryside with my grandparents, like many of my peers. I climbed trees and shed roofs, spent days outdoors, did field and garden work, and stayed active. At school, I practised ballroom dance four times a week, and tried other sports as well - although, looking back, not always the “right way.” I remember that in long-distance running I was always among the first in class, and I never really struggled with any sport, physical task, or team game. But, for example, in the 60-metre sprint I never made it into the class relay team, and in ball throwing I was terribly clumsy (and still am!).

After high school, independent life began. I moved to Tallinn, started university, and entered a decade of minimal physical activity, as other things simply felt more exciting and important. At the same time, I accelerated my professional career, climbing the corporate ladder quickly and intensively. Yet it was during this period that two of my current hobbies began - snowboarding (still one of my favourites to enjoy on trips with my children) and golf (one of the few sports where I am actually rather skilled).

At the ages of 24 and 27 I had my children, and fortunately long stroller walks (in all kinds of weather) helped me maintain at least some level of fitness. Approaching 30, for some inexplicable reason, an interest in running began to emerge, though not yet in the best way. For two years in a row I registered in the spring for the Tallinn Marathon half-distance, and for two years in a row I hobbled/walked through it in the autumn without any preparation (NB! I do not recommend this).

At the beginning of 2014 I truly started running (initially alternating with walking), and by the end of that year I had enjoyed this simplest of sports more than 200 times, covering about 1,500 km. In early 2015 I joined #sportlandteam, and the rest is history - various running competitions, experiments with cycling events, cross-country skiing, triathlon courses, group training, gym workouts, crossfit, and later also tennis. The 5 km on the track quietly turned into 42.2 km, the first small triathlon unexpectedly became an Ironman 70.3, and at the age of 39 I discovered that the Cooper test was still tough, but far more fun than it had been at school!

Through sport I experienced incredible strength, energy, and courage to take on even the biggest and most impossible-looking professional challenges, progressing from service manager at Sportland to Group level, and eventually to CEO of Sportland Estonia. As one of my missions in these roles was always to make our team more active and sporty, I discovered three very important things:

“Come, let’s do/experience this together” is far more powerful than “Go and do/experience this”, I applied this myself and encouraged all my team leaders to discover it as well.
To keep diverse teams motivated, corporate sports initiatives must offer value to both beginners and experienced enthusiasts, combining continuous novelty, gamification, and, where relevant, healthy competition. Equally important is raising awareness by always answering the question “why?”.
Sport changes life. At first I didn’t realise how those “crazy” challenges in sport consistently contributed to the highlights of my professional and personal life, helping me find balance and maintain mental health. But once I began reading books and scientific articles about the impact of sport and movement on the brain, I understood: my focus, stress tolerance, courage muscle, emotional intelligence, and even the creativity of my problem-solving were all boosted by my sports habits!

Today, sport is an inseparable part of my life and I wouldn’t want it any other way. Regular and varied training, shared hobbies with my husband and children, and daily movement keep me balanced, positive, social, and highly capable. Sport has also given me a strong community. Surrounded by active friends, I am constantly inspired and reminded that people who love movement radiate positivity.

I continue to train primarily for myself. I enjoy many different sports, not striving to be the fastest or the most skilled in one discipline, but always eager to test myself in new challenges. In 2024, I fulfilled one dream by completing a full Ironman. Next, I aim to run a marathon under four hours, improve my tennis serve, finally master freestyle swimming, and qualify for the World Marathon Majors, etc., etc.