Ukrainian boxer Usyk defeats Fury to retain heavyweight championship belt
Ukrainian boxer Oleksandr Usyk defeated U.K.-born Tyson Fury by unanimous decision in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Dec. 22 to retain his unified heavyweight championship title.
The victory, which all judges scored 116-112, comes amid a highly anticipated rematch of a bout that Usyk also won in May.
With his victory, Usyk has been undefeated in all of his 23 professional fights.
Following his victory, Usyk dedicated his victory to his mother, "and to all the mothers of Ukraine."
President Volodymyr Zelensky also congratulated Usyk following his victory, adding that Usyk's win was "so needed by all of us right now."
"By keeping his championship belts, Oleksandr proves: we are Ukrainians and we will not give up what is ours. And no matter how hard it was – we will overcome. Whether it's the ring, the battlefield, or the diplomatic arena – we fight and we won’t give up what is ours," Zelensky wrote on social media.
In a symbolic move following his victory, Usyk, originally from Crimea, raised a 17th century sabre once owned by Cossack Hetman Ivan Mazepa. The sabre, preserved in the Chernihiv Historical Museum, was carefully transported to Riyadh through the Oleksandr Usyk Charitable Foundation and Ukraine WOW.
After the match, U.K. boxer Daniel Dubois and International Boxing Federation (IBF) heavyweight champion entered the ring and challenged Usyk to a bout for Usyk's championship title.
Before becoming a professional boxer in 2013, Usyk competed as an amateur boxer with a record of 335 wins and 15 losses. He was crowned Olympic gold medalist in men's heavyweight boxing at the 2012 London Games.
Kateryna Hodunova
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