The return and rise of Ontario's Nikita

Driven by passion and perseverance, Nikita’s journey transcends beyond the ring and into the realm of fitness.

Nikita comes from an extensive background in combat sports, beginning when she was just 10 years old. “I started with karate, and then I moved on to taekwondo. Then I started kickboxing and krav maga when I was 15,” she recently told SlamWrestling.net.

Jane Miroshynkova started wrestling in 2009 in Toronto at Squared Circle Training with Rob Fuego. Obsessed with wrestling growing up, Nikita credits the likes of Chris Jericho, Triple H and The Rock for inspiring her. “The way [The Rock] gets the crowd to react to him I remember thinking this is what I want to do.” She wanted nothing more than to fire up a crowd through her promos and matches.

Nikita during her first year of wrestling

However, during her training, an unfortunate injury forced Nikita to take time off from wrestling. “I fell on my leg wrong and broke it in four places,” she recalled. Opting out of surgery increased the recovery time to over a year. She revealed that she also had a herniated disc in her back around the same time. Despite these setbacks, Nikita took her time off as an opportunity to branch out to new ventures, like getting a post-secondary degree in early childhood education at Sheridan College and a job outside of wrestling at TD Bank. After a few years, she had the itch to wrestle again but the start of COVID-19 further delayed the process.

In September 2022, the 5-foot-4, 122-pound Nikita finally made her triumphant return to face Rosemary for the Smash Wrestling Women’s Championship. Her comeback became even more memorable, as she not only won the match but secured her first championship victory. “I thought it was super cool of an opportunity just even to have a title match as my first match back. I felt so blessed and so honored.”

Hesitation did creep into the back of her mind as she feared whether or not there was still a place for her after being gone for so long. Nikita silenced her doubts because the opportunities she had since returning were enough evidence to prove she still belongs in the ring. “One of the best accomplishments for me was getting on Ring of Honor. It was under a year of being back that I got that opportunity.” In July 2023, she went head-to-head with ROH Women’s Champion Athena in a short match. Although she didn’t win, she made a lasting first impression by looking right at home in the ring.

Nikita holding the Smash Wrestling women’s championship belt on Sept. 18, 2022.

Showing no signs of slowing down, she represented Ukraine at Smash Wrestling’s International Fight Night that same year. Nikita takes pride in her heritage, “I love being able to say I represent a country like Ukraine because even to this day, there are not that many Ukrainian people that are out there doing sports.”

She and her family moved to Canada when she was eight years old, “It was the second poorest country in Europe at the time and my mom was like, I want a better future for my daughter.”

Women’s wrestling continues to evolve, and taking the break means that Nikita sees it differently. She remembers that at the same time she started training, women’s wrestling wasn’t taken seriously like it is today. “It was geared a bit more towards [the thought that] women weren’t seen as somebody that can be super athletic.” She is amazed that she has seen women do the things she wanted to do growing up such as having ladder matches and headlining WrestleMania. Gone are the days of two-minute matches and standing on the sidelines, especially with female wrestlers like Nikita who demand your attention.

Nikita in action. Photo by Steve Vincent

Evolution leaves no room for stagnancy; the 32-year-old Nikita constantly works on improving herself. Being aware of her limitations and thinking of creative ways to incorporate new moves into her matches is important. This also applies to her character. “I think one of the most important things to have is a character that stands out or do something that no one on the show has done. I want to be remembered in some way.” She has definitely made her mark in the ring and maintains this mindset in everything she does.

Upon returning to wrestling, Nikita has reinvented herself into someone who exudes confidence in the ring and on the mic. You don’t need to tell her she’s the best — she already knows. Never without her phone, Nikita is obsessed with herself in the best way possible. It’s her world and we’re just living in it. While very few can hang with her, she found a like-minded partner in Seleziya Sparx to form the mini-faction Lethal Gaze. On their Vibe Check sessions, they’ll make sure to let you know you’ll never be on their level. The two have known each other since 2010 which greatly benefits their performance.

“We’ve got natural chemistry and we can vibe off each other very well. It’s like twin magic,” Sparx chimed in on working with Nikita. Sparx is the current Smash Wrestling Women’s champion, after Nikita was stripped of the title.

Fitness is another passion of Nikita’s. She knew she wanted to begin wrestling training right after high school and started to take fitness seriously when she was 15. “I started reading magazines, how do I start working out? I started home workouts and then I moved on going to the local rec center.”

Reading autobiographies of different wrestlers introduced her to how intense the training process can be. “You go to wrestling school and you do 1000 pushups.”

As Nikita became more passionate about health, she set goals for herself in this area of her life as well. “I’ve always had this dream of wanting to be in a fitness magazine.” This goal has been accomplished twice as Nikita was recently featured in Inside Fitness magazine for the second time. “I’m so grateful, it’s a dream come true to be featured.” Another goal she’s working towards is to be on the cover of a fitness magazine someday.

Nikita stuns at the gym. Photo by Geoffrey Cole

Fitness is an attribute that positively affected Nikita’s lifestyle. Going to the gym is just as important as brushing her teeth. “I make really conscious decisions about how I spend my day, how active I am.” She expanded with an example of doing physical activity when spending time with others, like hiking or riding a bike instead of sitting around.

While Nikita had a clear goal in mind when getting into fitness, that isn’t the case for everyone. She gave great advice for people who may be hesitant to start their own fitness journey: “When I first started going to the gym it was daunting. I think the biggest thing is to kind of let go of all those external things and just realize this is your journey. There’s no right or wrong in doing it.” Remember why you are starting in the first place and not comparing your progress with others, she emphasized.

Nikita sets an example for wrestling fans everywhere by proving that you can meet your goals with hard work and dedication despite any roadblocks that come your way.

Nikita is on the upcoming Smash Wrestling show, Smashapalooza, on Saturday, April 6, at the Rec Room Toronto, facing Haley Dylan. For tickets and more information, visit smash-wrestling.com

TOP PHOTO: Nikita in the ring. Photo by Geoffrey Cole, shootingtheindies.com

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