He won a gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens.

He began his sports career at Kherson State Secondary School.

As a child, he was fond of jumping on a trampoline, as he says - "loved it for its extremity".

His first coach was Igor Molchanov, who, according to Nikitin, taught the young athlete to "be a man" He graduated from the Kherson Higher School of Physical Culture.

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