Watching football, listening to music. (Athlete, 22 Sep 2021)

Athlete

Wife Irina Shapovalova

Russian

Central Sports Army Club [CSKA]: Russia

Vitaly Bubnovsky [personal], RUS, from 2019

2014

In December 2020 he had surgery due to a hand injury, which ruled him out of the 2021 Russian Championships in Penza, Russian Federation, and the 2021 European Championships in Basel, Switzerland. (tass.ru, 25 Feb 2021; ya-trener.ru, 01 May 2021)

In January 2017 he underwent surgery on his hand after suffering a double fracture, which sidelined him for nearly a year. (vm.ru, 15 Oct 2019; tass.ru, 10 May 2017, 12 Mar 2018)

He began training at age six in Novosibirsk, Russian Federation.

He watched gymnastics competitions on TV and wanted to do the same.

To win gold at the Olympic Games. (Athlete, 22 Sep 2021)

Winning team gold at the 2019 World Championships in Stuttgart, Germany, and claiming team silver at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. (Athlete, 22 Sep 2021)

Japanese gymnast Hiroyuki Tomita. (Athlete, 23 Aug 2015)

"Everything in life does not happen in vain, the main thing is to believe in yourself and never give up." (rsport.ria.ru, 09 Jul 2019)

He was named 2019 Athlete of the Year in Olympic sports in the Novosibirsk region of the Russian Federation. (4s-info.ru, 24 Dec 2019)

In recognition of his achievements at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro he received the Order for Merit to the Fatherland [first class] and the title of Honoured Master of Sport in the Russian Federation. (kremlin.ru, 25 Aug 2016; minsport.gov.ru, 15 Aug 2016)

TOUGH RETURN
After undergoing hand surgery in January 2017, his recovery took longer than expected, which complicated his return to the sport. "After they pulled metal pins from my hand, I came to the gym and realised that I had grown up and put on weight without training. I forgot almost everything. I felt that I became heavier, lost speed, so I realised that I had to learn everything from scratch again. But I found strength in myself. I understood that I couldn't do anything else in life. Gymnastics has already given me a lot, I had to believe in myself, although I was losing heart. Some acquaintances were telling me, 'Come on, what for, you have already achieved everything'. But I did not lose faith in myself until the very end." (rsport.ria.ru, 14 Oct 2019)