Aleksander Antson

Estonia’s Aleksander Antson had a career as a teacher, writer, journalist, and track and field athlete. After graduating in 1915 Antson became a teacher in Kuressaare where he focused on gymnastics and athletics. His interest in the latter made him a successful all-round track and field athlete in his own right, winning eight bronze medals at the Estonian Championships from 1919 to 1925. During this time Antson ran in the 1,500 metres at the 1924 Paris Olympics but did not advance from his heat. Four years later he competed at the 1928 edition of the Spartakiad in Moskva.

In 1925 Antson began working as a journalist where he wrote for several Estonian newspapers over the next eight years. During the 1920s and 1930s he also wrote several novels and plays. By 1940 Antson was writing for the Communist Party newspaper Rahva Hääl. With the German occupation of Estonia in 1941 he was arrested and put in jail for two years and served time in an insane asylum. Less than three weeks after the end of World War II Antson was killed in a car accident in Haapsalu.

Personal Best: 1500 – 4:18.2 (1925).