Kanervo was born in Tornio in northern Finland and set national age group records from an early age, breaking the national under-11 record for boys' 150 metres in 2003 and the national indoor under-12 record for 60 metres the following year.[1][2] He competed in both the 110 m hurdles and the 400 m hurdles at the 2009 World Youth Championships in Brixen, Italy, but was eliminated in the early rounds in both events.[1] In 2010 Kanervo's family relocated to Helsinki, and he joined the training group of national hurdles coach Anatoly Mikhailov.[2] Kanervo represented Finland at the inaugural Youth Olympic Games in Singapore in August 2010, winning bronze in boys' 110 m hurdles (91.4 cm) in 13.53 and breaking his own national youth record; he was the first Finn to win a Youth Olympic medal.[2]
Kanervo placed fifth in the 110 m hurdles at the 2011 European Junior Championships.[1] He won his first senior-level medals at the Finnish championships in 2012, winning bronze indoors in the 60 m hurdles and gold outdoors in the 110 m hurdles.[1] At the 2012 World Junior Championships in Barcelona he again competed in the 110 m hurdles, setting a national junior record (13.61/99 cm) in the semi-finals; in the final he ran 13.62 and placed fifth.[1][3]
Kanervo repeated as Finnish champion in the 110 m hurdles in 2013; he represented Finland in that event at the European U23 Championships in Tampere, but was eliminated in the heats.[1] After the 2013 season Kanervo became a student at South Carolina University, coached by Curtis Frye.[4] He took up the 400 m hurdles again in 2014, running 51.52 in his first race over the senior (91.4 cm) hurdles; the time broke Ossi Mildh's HIFK club record from 1954 and was the fastest ever debut by a Finn.[5][6] He won his third consecutive Finnish championship title in the 110 m hurdles that year, but his times in that event had stagnated and the 400 m hurdles became his main event;[1][4] at the 2014 European Athletics Championships in Zürich he competed only in the 400 m hurdles, setting a personal best 50.35 in the heats but withdrawing from the semi-finals due to an injury.[4][7]
Kanervo broke 50 seconds in the 400 m hurdles for the first time on 11 April 2015 in Greenville, North Carolina, running 49.78.[8] He suffered from a persistent groin injury through the 2015 collegiate season, but stayed in good form; he qualified for his first NCAA championship final, placing sixth in 50.20.[9] At the 2015 European U23 Championships in Tallinn Kanervo improved his personal best to 49.66, winning silver behind Patryk Dobek of Poland; he was Finland's only medalist.[10]
Finland
