As his father died in World War II, the family lived very poorly, and Aleksei had to leave school and start working as miner.

[3] The peak of sporting career came for Vakhonin at the 1964 Olympic Games in Tokyo where he had a dramatic competition with Imre Foldi.

While standing with the weight above his head, he lifted one leg in a stork-like manner to show that the celebrations were premature and he could do more if needed.

[3] After a failure at the World Championships in Tehran (1965) Vakhonin rebounded by winning in 1966 in Berlin, defeating Foldi once again.

[3] Since 1994, a weightlifting tournament is held in his honor in Shakhty, the city where he lived his last years.