Erkki Pakkanen

Erkki Pakkanen

Personal information
Born	19 April 1930 Elimäki, Finland
Died	23 April 1973 (aged 43) Kouvola, Finland
Sport
Sport	Boxing
Medal record Representing  Finland Olympic Games 1952 Helsinki Lightweight

Erkki Olavi Pakkanen (19 April 1930 – 23 April 1973) was an amateur lightweight boxer from Finland who won a bronze medal at the 1952 Olympics.

Pakkanen took up boxing in 1947 and won the Finnish junior title in 1949. He never held a senior national title, and qualified for the Helsinki Olympics by winning the Olympic trials. At the Olympics, he lost in a semifinal to the eventual winner Aureliano Bolognesi. Earlier in 1950 he seriously injured his right hand. The injury recurred in 1953 forcing Pakkanen to retire from boxing.^[1] He later ran a taxi company that he founded in 1958. Shortly after his 43rd birthday, Pakkanen died of a heart attack at a horse racing track while watching his son Jarmo competing. In 2008 he was inducted into the Finnish Boxing Hall of Fame.^[2]

1952 Olympic results

Below are the results of Erkki Pakkenen, a Finnish lightweight boxer who competed at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics:

• Round of 32: bye
• Round of 16: defeated Petros Nazarbegian (Iran) by decision, 3-0
• Quarterfinal: defeated Vicente Matute (Venezuela) by decision, 3-0
• Semifinal: lost to Aureliano Bolognesi (Italy) by decision, 0-3 (was awarded bronze medal)

References