Tarabin's first international appearance in the javelin came at the 2007 World Youth Championships in Athletics, where he competed in the qualifying round. He placed eleventh in the javelin at the 2007 European Cup and improved to 67.39 metres the following year 2008 European Cup, taking fourth in the Second League. He threw a best of 69.63 m to win in the Third League of the 2009 European Team Championships and also competed in the qualifiers of the 2009 European Athletics Junior Championships. After graduating from high school he began attending the Moscow sports college, training under Mikhail Mikheyev. Following the move he quickly improved, opening his 2010 season with a Moldovan record of 74.78 metres. The improved training conditions and financial support led him to transfer to compete for Russia internationally from June 2010 onwards (he already held dual-citizenship).