Boxing legends Wladimir and Vitali Klitschko have said they are “ready to die” in the fight against Russian forces invading Ukraine.
The two former heavyweight world champions are currently in Ukraine’s capital Kyiv, which Vitali is the mayor of, as a 40-mile military convoy approaches the capital.
The brothers reiterated their commitment to fight for their home country, with Vitali saying he is “proud to see how patriotic people are”.
“We’re not interested in how strong the Russian army is, we’re ready to fight,” he told CNN. “And we’re ready to die for our home country and for our families, because it’s our home. It’s our future and somebody wants to come to our home and steal our future from us.”
He added there was a “huge patriotic movement” to defend the country and that Ukrainians of all working backgrounds are ready to take up arms.
He said: “We stayed in front of one of the strongest armies in the world. The will to be independent is the main priority for us. And we’re defending our families, our city, our country and our future.
“There is a huge patriotic movement right now. Old people, can you imagine? Doctors, actors, actors from the theatre, many professions that never had no expectation to fight, to keep weapons.
“But right now they are coming to us, they’re ready to fight. It’s amazing.”
Ukrainian professional boxer Oleksandr Usyk has also confirmed he joined a territorial defence battalion and was ready to fight. “Maybe, it’ll sound sentimental,” he said in the CNN interview via manager and translator Egis Klimas.
“But my soul belongs to the Lord and my body and my honour belong to my country, to my family. So there is no fear, absolutely no fear. There’s just bafflement -- how could this be in the 21st century?
“I really don’t know when I’m going to be stepping back in the ring. My country and my honour are more important to me than a championship belt.”
After Russia began what is described by president Vladimir Putin as “a special military operation” last week, Usyk posted a message on Instagram imploring Mr Putin to stop the war. Usyk said ordinary Russians had been deceived.
“Russian people don’t really know exactly what’s going on here,” he said. “They’re not seeing what’s going on. They are victims of their President (Vladimir Putin).”
Two-time Olympic gold medallist and three-time world champion Vasyl Lomachenko has also donned combat fatigues as a member of a defence battalion.
He was pictured on his official Facebook page at the weekend with an assault rifle slung over his shoulder near Odessa.
“The Belgorod-Dnestrovsky Territorial Defence Battalion has been formed and armed,” the caption read. “In the territorial defence, boxer Vasiliy Lomachenko informed the mayor.”
Additional reporting by agencies
