Mikhail Kotelnikov was born in 1923 in the Russian-Vlasovsky farm of the Morozovsky District of the Rostov Region in a peasant family. On October 1, 1943, the platoon leader of the 529th Rifle Regiment, Second Lieutenant Kotelnikov, under enemy fire, moved his platoon to the right Bank of the Dnieper River near the village of Lyutezh in the Vyshgorod District of the Kiev Region. Having occupied the enemy's advanced trenches, he held the bridgehead, ensuring the company's crossing. After the commander was wounded, he took command of the company. By decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of October 29, 1943, Lieutenant Kotelnikov was awarded the title of the Hero of the Soviet Union.