Born of a Ukrainian mother and Russian father in Sverdlovsk, Russia.
Khnykin has lived in Ukraine since 1970.
For health reasons and to gain strength, he began to swim on the advice
of his doctor at the age of seven. Years later, competing at the junior level, he started
to make a name for himself in Ukraine.
A two-year stint in the army did not impede his progress as he was
allowed to pursue swimming on a full-time basis.
After being discharged from the army in 1989, Khnykin enrolled at the
Kyiv Institute of Physical Education.
In 1991 Khnykin was the lead off man in the Soviet 4 x 100m freestyle
gold medal team at the European Championships.
The weekend of the 1991 World Cup 1 competition in Montreal, Canada
(Nov. 29 - Dec. 1) was a memorable occasion. Khnykin won three gold medals and added a
silver. In the process he established four personal best times. Khnykin's superb
performance in the pool was overshadowed by the historical significance of the event. It
was the first time in the history of sport that Ukraine competed as an independent state.
Khnykin's gold medal was the first won by a Ukrainian representing Ukraine (since on
December first of that year voters overwhelmingly supported Ukraine's independence in a
referendum).
"None of this has sunk in yet," Khnykin stated after his last
race. "I came to Montreal to swim. I am an athlete. I am very happy with my
results....Yet one cannot but think of the events back home....When I get back to Kyiv, I
will go for a long walk and try to comprehend what it feels like to live in a new
country." (The Ukrainian Sports Federation of USA and Canada sponsored Ukraine's
participation at the World Cup 1 in Montreal.)
At the 1992 Olympics, as a member of the Commonwealth of Independent
States team, Khnykin won two silver medals in relays and placed 4th in the 100m butterfly.
Since then Khnykin has had varied results. In 1995, he was rated in the
world's top 20 in his specialties - 50 and 100m freestyle and 100m butterfly.
