Yrjölä came from an athletic family: both his father (Paavo Yrjölä) and his uncle (Iivari Yrjölä) competed in the decathlon.
Yrjölä was the first decathlete to score higher than Jim Thorpe at the 1912 Summer Olympics.
Paavo Nurmi | Paavo Siljamäki | Paavo Ruotsalainen | Paavo Lipponen | Paavo Yrjölä | Paavo Nurmi Marathon | Paavo Lipponen's first cabinet | Paavo Cajander | Paavo Aaltonen |