Veikko Aarne Aleks Huhtanen (5 June 1919 – 29 January 1976) was a

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

artistic gymnast. He was the most successful gymnast at the

1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and also known as London 1948) were an international multi-sport event held from 29 July to 14 August 1948 in London, England, United Kingdom. Following a twelve-year hiatus ca ...

by taking home five medals, including three gold medals. In the

pommel horse The pommel horse is an artistic gymnastics apparatus. Traditionally, it is used by only male gymnasts. Originally made of a metal frame with a wooden body and a leather cover, the modern pommel horse has a metal body covered with foam rubber and ...

event Huhtanen and two other Finns, Heikki Savolainen and

Paavo Aaltonen Paavo Johannes Aaltonen (11 December 1919 – 9 September 1962) was a Finnish artistic gymnast and a three-time Olympic champion. At the 1948 Summer Olympics, he won four medals, of which three were gold, including a three-way tie for gold in ...

, had the same score and the gold medal was shared between the three. Huhtanen won two silver medals at the 1950 World Championships, in

horizontal bar The horizontal bar, also known as the high bar, is an apparatus used by male gymnasts in artistic gymnastics. It traditionally consists of a cylindrical metal (typically steel) bar that is rigidly held above and parallel to the floor by a syste ...

and with a team. Domestically he won only one individual title, in horizontal bar in 1948. Huhtanen retired after failing to qualify for the 1952 Olympics. He later worked as a machine operator in a factory and remained involved with gymnastics as a referee.

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* * 1919 births 1976 deaths Sportspeople from Vyborg Finnish male artistic gymnasts Gymnasts at the 1948 Summer Olympics Olympic gymnasts of Finland Olympic gold medalists for Finland Olympic silver medalists for Finland Olympic bronze medalists for Finland Olympic medalists in gymnastics Medalists at the 1948 Summer Olympics Medalists at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships 20th-century Finnish people {{Finland-artistic-gymnastics-bio-stub