Lauri Aleksanteri Lehtinen (August 10, 1908 – December 4, 1973) 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

Athletics (track and field)

Athletics is an exclusive collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking. The most common types of athletics competitions are track and field, road running, cross country running, and race walking...

, winner of a controversial 5000 m at the 1932 Summer Olympics

1932 Summer Olympics

The 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 Angeles

Los Ángeles

Los 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...

.

Born in Porvoo

Porvoo

Porvoo is a city and a municipality situated on the southern coast of Finland approximately east of Helsinki. Porvoo is one of the six medieval towns in Finland, first mentioned as a city in texts from 14th century...

, Finland, Lauri Lehtinen ran a new world record

World record

A world record is usually the best global performance ever recorded and verified in a specific skill or sport. The book Guinness World Records collates and publishes notable records of all types, from first and best to worst human achievements, to extremes in the natural world and beyond...

 in 5000 m (14:17.0) just a month prior to the Olympics, thus becoming a main favourite to the Olympic 5000 m Champion title.

In the final, the Finns Lehtinen and Lauri Virtanen

Lauri Virtanen

Lauri Johannes Virtanen was a Finnish long distance athlete, winner of bronze medals in the 5000 m and 10000 m at the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.- References :*...

 led early. They managed to shake off all other competitors except Ralph Hill

Ralph Hill

Ralph Anthony Hill was an American long distance runner.Hill studied at the University of Oregon when competing in the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles on the 5000 m. In an exciting race on Aug 5 1932, he came in second behind Lauri Lehtinen, with each runner recording a time of 14.30,0...

 from the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. Soon the race turned into a battle between Lehtinen and Hill. On the last lap, Hill tried to overtake Lehtinen. Seeing this, the Finn blocked his way, zig-zagging from one lane to the other to the great exasperation of the crowd. At the finish, Lehtinen crossed first a mere 50 centimetres ahead. Although this was a common tactic in Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

, the American audience was unaccustomed to it, so they booed. Hill declined to file a protest. They both recorded an identical time of 14:30.0. This was the only 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...

 race longer than 200 metres in which the top two finishers recorded identical times.

At the 1936 Summer Olympics

1936 Summer Olympics

The 1936 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was held in 1936 in Berlin, Germany. Berlin won the bid to host the Games over Barcelona, Spain on April 26, 1931, at the 29th IOC Session in Barcelona...

, Lehtinen couldn't defend his title, finishing second after fellow countryman Gunnar Höckert

Gunnar Höckert

Gunnar Mikael Höckert was a Finnish athlete, winner of 5000 m at the 1936 Summer Olympics.Born in Helsinki to a wealthy family, Gunnar Höckert had only one great season in 1936....

.

In 1940, Lehtinen donated his Los Angeles gold medal to a soldier who had served with distinction on the Karelian Isthmus

Karelian Isthmus

The Karelian Isthmus is the approximately 45–110 km wide stretch of land, situated between the Gulf of Finland and Lake Ladoga in northwestern Russia, to the north of the River Neva . Its northwestern boundary is the relatively narrow area between the Bay of Vyborg and Lake Ladoga...

. Lehtinen's gesture was a mark of respect for Höckert, who was killed in action on the Isthmus.

In Kerkkoo village in Porvoo, there is a road named after him, "Lauri Lehtisen Tie."