Mykola Avilov
Mykola Avilov is a retired Ukrainian Soviet decathlete who competed at the 1968, 1972 and 1976 Olympics. He won a gold medal in 1972, setting a new world record, a bronze in 1976, and finished fourth in 1968.
Unusually tall for his time Avilov first played basketball, then changed to high jump in 1962, and only in 1966 turned to decathlon. He won that event at the 1970 Universiade and finished second in 1973. In 1971 he married Valentyna Kozyr, an Olympic high jumper. Avilov retired in 1980 after finishing fifth at the Soviet Championships. He then coached athletics in Ukraine, Iraq, China, Egypt and the Seychelles.
In the 2015 Odessa regional election Avilov was elected into the Odessa Oblast parliament as the first of the Petro Poroshenko Bloc's election ballot.
