Heavyweight world champion Oleksandr Usyk was briefly arrested at the airport in Krakow, Poland, but has since been released.
According to a report by the US sports channel ESPN, Oleksandr Usyk and his trainer Sergey Lapin were prevented from boarding a plane to Valencia at the airport in Krakow (Poland), where the Ukrainian heavyweight world champion wants to prepare for his rematch against Tyson Fury on December 21.
Selenskyj knocks out champion
An incident that brought Volodymyr Zelensky to the scene. The Ukrainian president intervened and wrote on “X” that he had spoken to Usyk on the phone and that he was free. Usyk himself described the incident on Instagram as a “misunderstanding”. The WBA (Super), WBO and WBC champion praised the Polish police and said with a wink that they had done their job regardless of “size, weight, reach and insignia”.
According to ESPN, the reason for the arrest: The perception of an airline employee at the airport led to the Usyk team being prevented from boarding the plane – the 37-year-old and his coach were allegedly not in a suitable condition for the flight. Usyk reportedly objected to this and explained that they were simply exhausted after a 14-hour journey from Ukraine, which involved a 900-kilometer drive. The champion’s language barrier (Usyk barely speaks English) and his indignation are then said to have been the reason for the interim arrest.
Text: Frank Schwantes