Four of the most successful Ukrainian boxers are in a tougher fight than they’ve ever known.
Vitali Klitschko, Wladimir Klitschko, Oleksandr Usyk and Vasiliy Lomachenko were among those who fought with their countrymen in the battle against the Russian invaders.
Vitali Klitschko is the mayor of Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine.
The Russians began what President Vladimir Putin called a “special military operation” on February 24, resulting in massive loss of life and property in Ukraine. And no end is in the web.
Here’s what the boxers had to say:
VITALI KLITSCHKO
“If someone comes to Ukraine, we have no choice … we have to fight for our country”
Vitali Klitschko, Mayor of Kiev, said everyone in Ukraine was shocked by reports that thousands of Russian troops had been deployed near their border. https://t.co/8M2HLOO9Cv # R4Today pic.twitter.com/9ngpTFv3bJ
– BBC Radio 4 Today (@ BBCr4today) January 26, 2022
“Thousands, already tens of thousands, have died in this war against Ukraine. And this number is unfortunately only going to grow,” Klitschko told Reuters. “We will not surrender. We have nowhere to retreat.”
“The situation is tense, people are worried. The city needs peace and peaceful skies. … Kyiv residents have been in their basements non-stop for a week now because air raid alarms keep going off. ”
He added, speaking directly to Russian citizens: “You are instruments in the hands of one man (Putin) with one ambition: to revive the Soviet Union. … For one’s ambition, we are paying a heavy price. ”
Klitschko said in an interview with Sky News, apparently referring to himself and/or those around him: “We killed a number of people, I guess six people last night.”
WLADIMIR KLITSCHKO
️Володимир о о ократичного акликом айно опомотити оавійни оавійни о
, оширюйте серед аших англомовних знайомих. Log in pic.twitter.com/mt5Jmmu6hr
– алій о (@Vitaliy_Klychko) February 26, 2022
“It was complete madness. … What is happening is terrorism. It happens in 2022. It’s something that one’s mind doesn’t understand. You don’t know if you’ll make it through tomorrow.
“Those nights, hearing explosions all night and gunfire in the street, it makes you feel anxious.
“We are really counting the hours here. We don’t have time. We need to act now, we need to stop this madness. All the money that Russia has is being used to buy lethal weapons that are killing Ukrainians.”
OLEKSANDR USYK
“I don’t want to kill people, but if they come to kill me or my family, I will kill,” Ukrainian boxer Oleksandr Usyk in an interview with CNN
#Ukraine pic.twitter.com/z0KBUnGUiV
– Ukraine War News🇺🇦 (@ Ukrayina1) March 3, 2022
The head of the heavyweight title spoke to CNN through an interpreter.
“If they want to take my life, or the lives of those close to me, I will have to do it. But I don’t want that. I don’t want to shoot, I don’t want to kill anyone, but if they’re going to kill me, I won’t have any other choice. “
“It may sound sentimental,” he explained, “but my soul belongs to God and my body and honor belong to my country, my family. So there is no fear, absolutely no fear. Only confusion. How can this be in the 21st century? ”
“The bombing around was crazy. They just bombed Mariupol, a friend of mine planted a rocket on his roof. [The Russians] don’t play games. “
“The Russian people don’t really know exactly what is happening here. They don’t see what’s going on. They are victims of their President [Putin]. ”
“I really don’t know when I’ll be back in the ring. My country and my honor are more important to me than a championship belt.”
VASILIY LOMACHENKO
The former three-division title was not cited but joined a defensive battalion. Photos of him in full uniform were posted on social media (see below).
🇺🇦 The Belgorod-Dnestrovsky Territorial Defense Battalion was formed and armed. In the defense of the territory, the martial artist @VasylLomachenko informed mayor Vitaly Grazhdan. pic.twitter.com/EMPExOL1q4
– UkraineBoxingPRO (@UkraineAtamans) February 27, 2022
Mykola Kovalchuk, president of WBC Ukraine, expressed admiration for the boxer.
“We are very proud of our fighters, our true champions in boxing and the champions in this fight,” said Kovalchuk. We are proud to be Ukrainians”.
