1. Illia Yuriiovych Kovtun is a Ukrainian artistic gymnast.
38 Facts About Illia Kovtun
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Illia Kovtun is the 2023 World all-around silver medalist and 2021 World all-around bronze medalist.
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Illia Kovtun competed at the 2018 European Championships where he helped Ukraine finish fifth in the team finals.
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Illia Kovtun competed at the Stella Zakharova Cup where he placed first in the junior all-around division.
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Illia Kovtun was selected to represent Ukraine at the inaugural junior World Championships alongside Nazar Chepurnyi and Volodymyr Kostiuk.
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Illia Kovtun next competed at the European Youth Olympic Festival in Baku, Azerbaijan, again alongside Chepurnyi and Kostiuk.
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Illia Kovtun competed at the 2020 European Championships held in Mersin, Turkey.
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Illia Kovtun won the silver medal in the junior vault event.
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Illia Kovtun turned senior in 2021 and made his senior international debut at the 2021 European Championships.
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Illia Kovtun won the bronze medal in the all-around competition behind Nikita Nagornyy and David Belyavskiy.
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Illia Kovtun next competed at the World Challenge Cups in Varna and Cairo; he picked up five gold medals and two bronze medals.
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Illia Kovtun was named to represent Ukraine alongside Petro Pakhnyuk, Ihor Radivilov, and Yevhen Yudenkov.
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Illia Kovtun ended up winning the series titles on floor exercise, pommel horse, and parallel bars.
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In October Illia Kovtun competed at the 2021 World Championships where he won the all-around bronze medal behind Zhang Boheng and Hashimoto Daiki.
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Illia Kovtun next competed at the Arthur Gander Memorial where he placed third behind Yul Moldauer and Nikita Nagornyy.
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Illia Kovtun then competed at the Swiss Cup where he was partnered with Yelyzaveta Hubareva; they finished second behind the Russian team of Nagornyy and Angelina Melnikova.
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Illia Kovtun next competed at the Doha World Cup where he qualified to all six apparatus event finals.
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Illia Kovtun became "an unwitting symbol of resilience and dignity" when, during the medal ceremony for the parallel bars, Russian gymnast and bronze medalist Ivan Kuliak taunted Illia Kovtun by wearing a Z on his chest - a symbol of support for the Russian invasion.
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Illia Kovtun did not visibly react to the taunt, and Kuliak was heavily sanctioned by the International Gymnastics Federation.
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At the Cairo World Cup Illia Kovtun won his third consecutive gold medal on the parallel bars.
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Illia Kovtun finished the World Cup circuit competing at the Baku World Cup.
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Illia Kovtun won his fourth consecutive gold medal on the parallel bars, completing a clean sweep of the titles.
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Illia Kovtun's team was given shelter by gymnastics clubs in European countries where they could train in exile and prepare for future competitions.
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Illia Kovtun competed several times for the Monaco gymnastics club in the French league.
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At the Szombathely Challenge Cup Illia Kovtun earned gold on both floor exercise and parallel bars.
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Illia Kovtun next competed at the Arthur Gander Memorial where he placed first in the four-event all-around despite a rough start on floor exercise.
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Illia Kovtun competed at the World Cups in Cottbus, Doha, and Baku.
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Illia Kovtun won gold on parallel bars in Cottbus and Doha and silver in Baku behind Carlos Yulo.
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At the European Championships Illia Kovtun became the European Champion on parallel bars, which is his first major title in his senior career.
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At the Cairo World Cup Illia Kovtun won gold on floor exercise, parallel bars, and horizontal bar and picked up bronze on pommel horse.
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In October Illia Kovtun competed at the 2023 World Championships alongside Nazar Chepurnyi, Igor Radivilov, Radomyr Stelmakh, and Oleg Verniaiev.
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In winning the silver medal, Illia Kovtun set the record for Ukraine's highest all-around placement at the World Championships, beating the record Verniaiev set in 2019 and Illia Kovtun himself matched in 2021.
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Illia Kovtun competed at the World Cups in Cairo, Cottbus, and Baku; he won gold on the parallel bars at each competition.
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Illia Kovtun next competed at the Osijek Challenge Cup where he won gold on floor exercise and silver on parallel bars behind Lukas Dauser.
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Illia Kovtun competed at the 2024 Olympic Games alongside Chepurnyi, Radivilov, Stelmakh, and Verniaiev.
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Illia Kovtun's parents enrolled him in gymnastics classes at the age of three, which he attended with his older sister.
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Illia Kovtun has resided in Osijek, Croatia since the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.
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Illia Kovtun has one skill named after him on parallel bars.