†
Arvo Aaltonen was a swimmer who competed for Finland. He competed at the 1912, 1920, and 1924 Summer Olympic Games. He passed away on 17 June 1949, at an age of 59. He was the only Finnish swimmer to have won a medal at the Olympic Games until Antti Kasvio won bronze in 1992.
At his first appearance at the Olympic Games, in his home country, he competed in two distances: the 200 metres and 400 metres breaststroke. Starting on the shorter distance, he finished second in the second head, behind Paul Malisch, "swimming powerfully", according to reports. In the semifinal, he wasn't able to repeat his good performance of the heats, being 4 seconds slower, and finishing last. In the longer distance, he went through the heats as second in the fourth heat, this time behind Percy Courtman. In the semifinal, he finished third in his heat, not advancing to the final based on time.
Eight years later, he competed again in both events, and this time, he was considered to be one of the favorites. In the 200 metres breaststroke, he finished second in the heats and the semifinals, both behind Hakan Malmroth. In the final, he took the first medal ever for Finland in swimming, swimming to bronze behind Malmroth and Thor Henning. On the 400 metres, the podium was exactly the same, with Aaltonen behind Malmroth and Henning.
He would go to the Olympic Games one last time in 1924, where he would only compete in the 200 metres breaststroke. He competed in the second heat, where he finished fourth out of six, with only the first two qualifying.
Olympic Results[]
| Year | Event | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1912 | Men's 200m breaststroke | 11th |
| Men's 400m breaststroke | 6th | |
| 1920 | Men's 200m breaststroke | 
|
| Men's 400m breaststroke |
| |
| 1924 | Men's 200m breaststroke | 19th |
1912[]
| Distance | Round | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 200 metres breaststroke | Heats | 3:13.0 |
| Semifinal | 3:17.0 | |
| Final | Did not advance | |
| 400 metres breaststroke | Heats | 6:48.8 |
| Semifinal | 6:56.8 | |
| Final | Did not advance |
1920[]
| Distance | Round | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 200 metres breaststroke | Heats | 3:11.6 |
| Semifinal | 3:12.4 | |
| Final | 3:12.2 | |
| 400 metres breaststroke | Heats | 6:50.0 |
| Semifinal | 6:45.0 | |
| Final | 6:48.0 |
1924[]
| Distance | Round | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 200 metres breaststroke | Heats | 3:11.0 |
| Semifinal | Did not advance | |
| Final |