- Kal Sajad and Mark Gutfort
- BBC – Jeddah
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47 minutes ago
photo released, BBC Sport
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After a carefully watched fight against Anthony Joshua for the heavyweight boxing world title, Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk will move from defending the titles to defending his country against the Russian invasion.
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“He will come back to defend the country, do not hesitate to do so,” OSIC promotional officer Alexander Krasuk told BBC Sport.
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USIC will face British boxer Joshua at King Abdullah Sports City in Saudi Arabia later today.
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“We have to move forward, be strong and move forward. This confrontation is very important. The Ukrainian people need to feel proud. To be happy,” said 35-year-old Usyk.
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The BBC takes a look at Usyk’s 12-month undefeated career, through the horrific events in his country.
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Making the dream come true
On September 25, Usyk defeated Briton Joshua in a match in London, securing the WBA, WBO and IBF heavyweight titles.
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At that point, tears rolled down the strongman’s cheeks, as he had fulfilled a dream he had pursued for the rest of his life. And secured him a world-famous stage spot in the future.
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The next step on his agenda was glory. As famous American boxer Rocky Marciano once said: What’s better than walking down the street or the city, knowing that you are the heavyweight champion of the world?
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Fans and reporters surrounded Usyk when he returned to his homeland. But all he wanted was a normal life.
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Upon arriving at the airport, he told reporters: “I just want to live. I want to take my children to school, I want to plant trees, water apple trees and spend more time with my wife.”
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He didn’t ask for much, but Usyk’s return to normal life only lasted five months. On February 24, Russia launched an all-out attack on Ukraine.
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photo released, Getty Images
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Usek defeated Anthony Joshua in London to win the title he had always dreamed of
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Usyk runs back from London
Usyk was in talks with Joshua’s team in London about a possible new fight between the two when it was reported that the Russian offensive had begun.
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“We were on a business trip to London and would be returning home the next morning,” said OSIC team manager Sergey Lapin.
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“But suddenly, a few hours before leaving for the airport, around 3 am, my wife called me crying and said that there were a lot of explosions going on, and most likely the war had started,” he continued. .
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“It was a long night – he added – Osik was on the phone and the news came that the bombing had started. Obviously the flight on which he was supposed to travel was canceled and this is how his journey began”.
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“Her family was in Kiev because her daughter was celebrating her birthday that day. Many of the guests were at her home in Kiev,” said Klasiuk.
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Then the talk about a new confrontation became irrelevant. Usyk’s only task was to recover his wife Ekaterina and his three children Kirillo, Mikhailo and Elizaveta.
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Usyk’s trip lasted three months, with no direct flights to Ukraine.
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Krasiuk said the Ukrainian boxer “got on a plane to Poland and drove to the Ukrainian border.”
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photo released, Getty Images
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defence from Ukraine
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Like most men in Ukraine, Usyk was involved in the war effort. He had seen the destruction with his own eyes.
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“Russian soldiers shot at our house, broke through the gate and took some of our neighbors with them,” Usik told Profiboxing.
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Usyek appeared in the photo holding a rifle ( AK-47), in early March, together with his friend, former boxer Vasily Lomachenko, but he never denied the use of weapons.
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The boxer’s team manager explained: “He started moving to the area where he lived with his partners and colleagues, joining a group of vigilantes to defend him.”
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He added that Usik’s job “was to move around in search of strangers. He installed barriers to monitor who enters and who exits. To make sure that strangers or people do not cross paths” and inform the relevant services when something happens.
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A month after the invasion, Joshua’s confrontation, likely to take place in May, was the last thing that crossed the mind of the Ukrainian hero.
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Usik told CNN he doesn’t know when he’ll be back in the ring, adding, “My country and my honor are more important to me than a championship belt.”
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Krasiuk said Usik did not want to leave his country and his family.
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He continued: “He asked his wife to leave, to cross the border into Poland or any European country. She told him she wouldn’t go without him. He was nervous.”
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“We didn’t know what was going to happen and if the match was going to take place,” added Krasiok. “I talked to (his promoter of him) Eddie Hearn and he said Anthony Joshua understood exactly what was going on,” he said.
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photo released, Getty Images
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Usyk says he wants to play the game for peace in Ukraine
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Afor physical recovery And the soul
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Usyek’s priority was to protect his homeland, but it was the will of the Ukrainian people that convinced him to think about returning to the ring.
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Krasiuk said the world boxing champion was “traveling the country, visiting hospitals and injured and talking to fans, and everyone he met heard words of support and blessings from them for fighting again.”
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“Go back to being a professional fighter, go back to work. People wanted the Ukrainian flag raised and the Ukrainian anthem heard all over the planet.”
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Usyek received the green light from the Ukrainian president, prime minister and sports minister. He was also supported by former heavyweight world champion Vitali Klitsch.
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Usyek and his team traveled to Poland at the end of March to start training.
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But with the sirens still ringing in their ears, Usek took some time to get used to boxing again and asked for help from a sports psychologist.
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Krasiuk stressed that after crossing the border in late March, without hearing the sirens and not feeling the danger as in Ukraine, this helped to ease the pressure.
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“It took a while to recover,” he said. “It probably took a month or more before we could get back to normal.”
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Despite winning all three championship titles, Usak is still a rookie heavyweight boxer and has only fought three games in this category, having passed the middleweight category.
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Lapin said the tension that accompanied the events in Ukraine left its mark on Usik’s body.
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He specified that the Ukrainian boxer lost a few kilograms of weight, “he kept fit, but he was very active”.
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She added: “Now everything is going well with him – his weight is back to normal and he feels a lot better both emotionally and mentally.”
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The stalemate was supposed to take place on July 23 in Saudi Arabia, an option that has sparked controversy due to the kingdom’s human rights situation and its military activities in Yemen.
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With some details finalized, it was confirmed that the match between Joshua and Usyk would take place on August 20, with unconfirmed reports that they would receive € 100,000 each.
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When the two boxers met face to face at a press conference in Saudi Arabia on June 21, Usyk did not say much or comment on the controversy surrounding the match taking place in the kingdom, saying only that he was fighting for the kingdom. Ukraine.
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“We’re not in the best of conditions right now at home,” Usic said. “I didn’t have loud, flashy speeches, all I did was work hard in my bootcamp and in the gym. That’s what I’ll do until the moment of reckoning.”
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USIC has launched a charity fund to help people affected by war. In August he tried to buy Ukrainian TV rights to the match from organizers in Saudi Arabia, but they were given them as a scholarship.
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He will broadcast the game via a free channel and on his YouTube channel for the viewing of his compatriots.
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“In light of the difficult times our country is going through, he is a great supporter of those people who needed him and asked him for help,” says Labin.
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“His motivation for this match was not his thirst for success or his desire to be the greatest – he decided to play it for his country and his people, because Ukraine had to win,” says Krasuk.
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concentration and professionalism
There is no doubt about Usik’s abilities as a boxer, he is a professional.
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But it is unknown whether this year’s events will help him or hinder his focus on the evening showdown.
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“Ukrainians have a strong mentality – they are a strong people,” says Krasuk.
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“They are not afraid of challenges. They are not afraid of some dangerous things because they have grown up with things like that,” he adds.
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He continues: “You feel the danger. There is some fear, but the strong man is not afraid, he can handle it (fear). Osek is that man.”
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He said: “I can’t say there are too many fighters in the world who can share a similar experience and go to war, step into the ring to defend their heavyweight titles, but Usyk will.”
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