Martti Lehtevä was first lined up to represent Finland internationally at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, where he was a substitute for upcoming bronze medalist Erkki Mallenius in the light-welterweight division. He had his first major international podium finish in 1955, when he was a bronze medalist in that category at the Nordic Championships. He also attended the 1959 European Championships, where he was eliminated in the first round by Benny Nielsen of Denmark. He then finally made it to the Olympics in 1960, but was again eliminated in round one, this time by South Africa’s Willie Ludick. Lehtevä retired shortly thereafter and never turned professional. Domestically, he won his only Finnish national title in 1958.
Finland