Ari Paunonen (born 10 March 1958) is a Finnish male former middle- and long-distance runner who competed over distances from 800 metres up to 10,000 metres. His best international performances at a major event were bronze at the 1977 European Cup and fifth at the 1983 European Athletics Indoor Championships.[1] [2] He was also the 1500 m silver medallist at the Nordic Indoor Athletics Championships in 1986.[3]
His personal best time of 3:55.65 minutes for the mile run is a Finnish record. He also set a European under-20 record of 7:43.20 minutes for the 3000 metres in 1977.[4] As a junior athlete he won back-to-back 1500 m titles at the European Athletics Junior Championships in 1975 and 1977, as well as a junior race bronze at the 1977 IAAF World Cross Country Championships.[5] [6] At national level he won a middle-distance double at the Finnish Athletics Championships in 1977, won a second 1500 m title in 1979 and took three short course cross country titles between 1977 and 1980.[7] He was also a four-time national indoor champion.[8]
Born in Sulkava, he later became editor of Juoksija, a Finnish sports and fitness magazine.[9] He married Alia Virkberg, also a former distance runner.
| 1975 | European Junior Championships | Athens, Greece | bgcolor=gold | 1st | 1500 m | 3:44.8 |
| 1977 | World Cross Country Championships | Düsseldorf, West Germany | 3rd | Junior race | 23:39 | |
| 6th | Junior team | 98 pts | ||||
| European Junior Championships | Donetsk, Soviet Union | bgcolor=gold | 1st | 1500 m | 3:41.6 | |
| European Cup | Helsinki, Finland | 3rd | 1500 m | 3:45.90 | ||
| 1978 | European Championships | Prague, Czechoslovakia | 9th (h) | 1500 m | 3:45.0 | |
| 1980 | World Cross Country Championships | Paris, France | 136th | Senior race | 40:15 | |
| 1983 | European Indoor Championships | Budapest, Hungary | 5th | 3000 m | 7:59.53 | |
| 1985 | World Cross Country Championships | Lisbon, Portugal | 66th | Senior race | 35:00 | |
| 9th | Team | 439 pts | ||||
| 1986 | European Indoor Championships | Madrid, Spain | 14th (h) | 1500 m | 3:50.07 | |
| Nordic Indoor Championships | Lidingö, Sweden | bgcolor=silver | 2nd | 1500 m | 3:46.07 | |
| 1988 | World Cross Country Championships | Auckland, New Zealand | 144th | Senior race | 38:40 |