Akilles Järvinen
Encyclopedia
Akilles Eero Johannes Järvinen (September 19, 1905, Jyväskylä
– March 7, 1943) was a Finnish
athlete and decathlete and Olympic
medallist.
Järvinen could be considered one of Finland's most versatile athletes. At the national level, his decathlon records are still competitive. His greatest success was as a decathlete
; he won two Olympic silver medals in the event. If the current decathlon points tables had been used, Järvinen would have won the gold medal on both occasion.
He also won a silver medal in the 400 m hurdles in the European Championships.
Akilles Järvinen's father, Verner Järvinen
, was himself a champion in the 1906 Summer Olympics
. The pair had a falling-out when Akilles started dating Annikki Sauli because her father, Jalmari Sauli
, had placed ahead of Verner in the shot put
at the 1908 Summer Olympics
. Akilles' brother Matti Järvinen
was an Olympic champion and 10-time world-record breaker in javelin throw
.
Akilles died in 1943 when the VL Pyry (serial number PY-37) trainer aircraft that he was flying in and that was piloted by Captain Erkki Pohjanheimo, crashed during a test flight.
Jyväskylä
Jyväskylä is the capital of Central Finland and the largest city on the Finnish Lakeland, north-east of Tampere and north of Helsinki, on northern coast of lake Päijänne. The city has been continuously one of the most rapidly growing cities in Finland since World War II. The city is surrounded...
– March 7, 1943) was a Finnish
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
athlete and decathlete and Olympic
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
medallist.
Järvinen could be considered one of Finland's most versatile athletes. At the national level, his decathlon records are still competitive. His greatest success was as a decathlete
Decathlon
The decathlon is a combined event in athletics consisting of ten track and field events. The word decathlon is of Greek origin . Events are held over two consecutive days and the winners are determined by the combined performance in all. Performance is judged on a points system in each event, not...
; he won two Olympic silver medals in the event. If the current decathlon points tables had been used, Järvinen would have won the gold medal on both occasion.
He also won a silver medal in the 400 m hurdles in the European Championships.
Akilles Järvinen's father, Verner Järvinen
Verner Järvinen
Venne "Verner" Järvinen was a Finnish athlete who competed mostly in the throwing events. A gold medalist in the Greek-style discus from the 1906 Intercalated Games, he went on to win a bronze in the same event at the 1908 Summer Olympics.-Career:Originally one of Finland's leading wrestlers, he...
, was himself a champion in the 1906 Summer Olympics
1906 Summer Olympics
The 1906 Intercalated Games or 1906 Olympic Games were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in Athens, Greece. They were at the time considered to be Olympic Games and were referred to as the "Second International Olympic Games in Athens" by the International Olympic Committee...
. The pair had a falling-out when Akilles started dating Annikki Sauli because her father, Jalmari Sauli
Jalmari Sauli
Jalmari Sauli was a Finnish writer and track and field athlete who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics.He was born in Hämeenlinna and died in Tampere....
, had placed ahead of Verner in the shot put
Shot put
The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" a heavy metal ball—the shot—as far as possible. It is common to use the term "shot put" to refer to both the shot itself and to the putting action....
at the 1908 Summer Olympics
1908 Summer Olympics
The 1908 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the IV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in 1908 in London, England, United Kingdom. These games were originally scheduled to be held in Rome. At the time they were the fifth modern Olympic games...
. Akilles' brother Matti Järvinen
Matti Järvinen
Matti Henrikki Järvinen was a Finnish javelin thrower. He won the Olympic gold medal at the 1932 Summer Olympics ahead of two other Finns, Matti Sippala and Eino Penttilä...
was an Olympic champion and 10-time world-record breaker in javelin throw
Javelin throw
The javelin throw is a track and field athletics throwing event where the object to be thrown is the javelin, a spear approximately 2.5 metres in length. Javelin is an event of both the men's decathlon and the women's heptathlon...
.
Akilles died in 1943 when the VL Pyry (serial number PY-37) trainer aircraft that he was flying in and that was piloted by Captain Erkki Pohjanheimo, crashed during a test flight.
Achievements
- Silver medal - Decathlon, 1928 Summer Olympics1928 Summer OlympicsThe 1928 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1928 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Amsterdam had bid for the 1920 and 1924 Olympic Games, but had to give way to war-victim Antwerp, Belgium, and Pierre de...
in AmsterdamAmsterdamAmsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population... - World record - Decathlon (1930)
- Silver medal - Decathlon, 1932 Summer Olympics1932 Summer OlympicsThe 1932 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the X Olympiad, was a major world wide multi-athletic event which was celebrated in 1932 in Los Angeles, California, United States. No other cities made a bid to host these Olympics. Held during the worldwide Great Depression, many nations...
in Los AngelesLos ÁngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants... - World record - Decathlon (1932)
- Silver medal - 400 m hurdles, 1934 European Championships in Athletics1934 European Championships in AthleticsThe 1st European Athletics Championships were staged at the Stadio Comunale in Turin, Italy from 7 September to 9 September 1934 including only men's events. Women's championships were held separately in 1938, but men's and women's events were combined at one venue from 1946.The discussion on the...
in TurinTurinTurin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat... - 10 gold & 9 miscellaneous medals - Finnish Championships
Personal Records Per Event
- 100 m - 10.9 s
- 200 m - 21.9 s
- 400 m - 49.0 s
- 1500 m - 4 m, 47 s
- 110 m hurdles - 15.2 s
- 200 m hurdles - 25.4 s
- 400 m hurdles - 53.7 s
- High jump - 180 cm
- Pole vault - 360 cm
- Long jump - 712 cm
- Triple jump - 14.32 m
- Shot put - 14.10 m
- Discus - 36.95 m
- Javelin - 63.25 m
- Decathlon - 8292 (1912 scoring tables)
External links
- decathlonusa.org (Article contains picture of Järvinen with the other two decathlon medalists in the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics.)