Vitali Klitschko - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Vitaliy Volodymyrovych Klychko is a Ukrainian professional heavyweight boxer

Boxing

Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...

and the current WBC

World Boxing Council

The World Boxing Council was initially established by 11 countries: the United States, Argentina, United Kingdom, France, Mexico, Philippines, Panama, Chile, Peru, Venezuela and Brazil plus Puerto Rico, met in Mexico City on February 14, 1963, upon invitation of the then President of Mexico, Adolfo...

heavyweight champion. He is a leader of the political party Ukrainian Democratic Alliance for Reform and a member of the Ukrainian delegation to the Congress of the Council of Europe. He previously held the WBO

World Boxing Organization

The World Boxing Organization is a sanctioning organization currently recognizing professional boxing world champions. The organization is recognized as one of the four major world championship groups by the IBHOF alongside the International Boxing Federation, the World Boxing Council and the...

and WBC

World Boxing Council

titles. Klitschko is the first professional boxing world champion to hold a Ph.D.

Doctor of Philosophy

Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...

Klitschko is known for his powerful punches and exceptional chin. With a 93% knockout percentage rate, he holds the best knockout-to-fight ratio of any champion in heavyweight boxing history. He has never been knocked down in any professional boxing bout, and has also never lost a decision. His two losses have come via a shoulder injury during a fight and a deep cut above his eye, which did however result in TKO losses. His power and his possession of a Ph.D has led to his nickname, Dr. Ironfist.

Klitschko's younger brother, Wladimir Klitschko

Wladimir Klitschko

Wladimir Klitschko is a Ukrainian heavyweight boxer. Klitschko is the WBA , IBF, WBO Super, IBO & Ring Magazine Champion. His older brother Vitali Klitschko is the current WBC champion...

, is the current WBA

World Boxing Association

The World Boxing Association is a boxing organization that sanctions official matches, and awards the WBA world championship title at the professional level. It was previously known as the National Boxing Association before changing its name in 1962...

Super, IBF

International Boxing Federation

The International Boxing Federation or IBF is one of four major organizations recognized by IBHOF which sanction world championship boxing bouts, alongside the WBA, WBC and WBO.- History :...

, WBO

World Boxing Organization

, IBO

International Boxing Organization

The International Boxing Organization is a for-profit organization that sanctions professional boxing matches and awards world and subordinate championships.- Origins :...

and Ring Magazine world heavyweight champion. He was awarded Germany's highest civilian award, the Federal Cross of Merit, for his varied accomplishments.

Kickboxing

Originally Klitschko was an amateur kickboxer

Kickboxing

Kickboxing refers to a group of martial arts and stand-up combat sports based on kicking and punching, historically developed from karate, Muay Thai and western boxing....

. In 1992 he was knocked out in the final of the European Kickboxing Championships +89 kg light contact division by Englishman Wimp Pelé Reid

Pelé Reid

Pelé Reid is an English heavyweight boxer. He currently resides in Birmingham, West Midlands and is a personal trainer.Reid is a former WBO Inter-Continental heavyweight champion and World Kick Boxing Champion....

. In 1993 he defeated Ryushi Yanagisawa

Ryūshi Yanagisawa

Ryūshi Yanagisawa is a Japanese professional wrestler, mixed martial artist and kickboxer. His real name is Atsushi Yanagisawa . As a martial artist, he competed in K-1, Pancrase Hybrid Wrestling and Fighting Network RINGS and holds victories over Oleg Taktarov, Paul Varelans, Vernon White, Jason...

in the Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

ese mixed martial arts

Mixed martial arts

Mixed Martial Arts is a full contact combat sport that allows the use of both striking and grappling techniques, both standing and on the ground, including boxing, wrestling, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, muay Thai, kickboxing, karate, judo and other styles. The roots of modern mixed martial arts can be...

promotion Pancrase

Pancrase

Pancrase is a mixed martial arts promotion company founded in Japan in 1993 by professional wrestlers Masakatsu Funaki and Minoru Suzuki. Pancrase is taken from Pankration, a sport in the ancient Olympic games. Suzuki and Funaki are particularly skilled in the art of catch wrestling and based the...

under WKA

World Kickboxing Association

The World Kickboxing Association is one of the oldest and the largest amateur and professional sanctioning organizations of kickboxing in the world for the sport. Its official name is "World Kickboxing and Karate Association"....

Special Rules (no low kicks) via R5 decision. In 1994 he defeated Richard Vince by second round KO to retain his ISKA World Super Heavyweight title In 1996 he turned professional and compiled a record of 34–1 with 22 knockouts. He was world champion six times (professional and amateur).

Boxing career

Klitschko won the super heavyweight championship at the first World Military Games in Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

in 1995. Vitali won the silver medal at the 1995 World Amateur Boxing Championships

1995 World Amateur Boxing Championships

thumb|German stamp from 1995The Men's 1995 World Amateur Boxing Championships were held in the Deutschlandhalle in Berlin, Germany from May 4 to May 15. The eighth edition of this competition, held a year before the Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, was organised by the world governing body for...

in Berlin

Berlin

Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...

, Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

, where he was defeated by Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

's Alexei Lezin

Alexei Lezin

Alexei Vladimirovich Lezin was a Russian boxer, who won the Super Heavyweight bronze medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics.Lezin never turned pro.- Amateur accomplishments :*1993 competed as a Heavyweight at the World Championships in Tampere, Finland...

in the final. In his autobiography, published in Germany in 2004, the boxer revealed that he tested positive for a banned steroid

Anabolic steroid

Anabolic steroids, technically known as anabolic-androgen steroids or colloquially simply as "steroids", are drugs that mimic the effects of testosterone and dihydrotestosterone in the body. They increase protein synthesis within cells, which results in the buildup of cellular tissue ,...

in 1996. He attributed the presence of the drug to treatment of a leg injury but was dismissed from the Ukrainian boxing team and missed the Atlanta Olympics. His brother Wladimir moved up from heavyweight to super-heavyweight to take his place in the squad. His amateur record was 195–15 with 80 knockouts.

WBO title

Klitschko began his professional boxing career in 1996, winning his first twenty-four fights by either early knockout

Knockout

A knockout is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts, Karate and others sports involving striking...

or technical knockout (TKO). He and Wladimir signed with the German athlete-promotion company Universum. With both brothers holding Ph.D.s and being multilingual, their refined and articulate personalities made for mainstream marketability when they moved to Germany and Universum. In time, they became national celebrities in their adopted home country. In his 25th pro fight, on 26 June 1999, Klitschko won the WBO heavyweight title from Herbie Hide

Herbie Hide

Herbie Hide is a British boxer of Nigerian heritage from Norwich currently fighting in the cruiserweight class...

of the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

by a 2nd round knockout.

He successfully defended the title twice. He defeated Ed Mahone by knockout in the third round, and beat Obed Sullivan

Obed Sullivan

Obed Benjamin Sullivan, born January 17, 1968 in Gulfport, MS, was a heavyweight boxer. Nicknamed "The Fighting Marine", Sullivan was at times a highly-ranked heavyweight who fought many significant fighters of his era....

who retired after the ninth round.

Loss to Chris Byrd

By April 2000 Vitali Klitschko was one of the top stars in the heavyweight division, and a prime candidate to be the next undisputed champion. He had won all 27 of his contests by knockout. On April 1 Klitschko had a third title defence against the American Chris Byrd

Chris Byrd

Chris Cornelius Byrd is a retired and former professional boxer. He is the former WBO and IBF heavyweight champion. His nickname is "Rapid Fire".- Early life :...

, who was a late replacement. Byrd made himself a difficult target, and tried to thwart Klitschko's offence by being elusive. Klitschko won most of the rounds and was heading towards a comprehensive points victory when he suffered a serious shoulder injury. After the ninth round Klitschko notified corner that he had a shoulder pain threw in the towel, thus handing Klitschko his first defeat and awarding Byrd the win by knockout. At the time of the stoppage Klitschko had a lead on all three judges' scorecards (89–82, and 88–83 twice). Klitschko, who was later diagnosed with a torn rotator cuff

Rotator cuff

In anatomy, the rotator cuff is the group of muscles and their tendons that act to stabilize the shoulder. The four muscles of the rotator cuff, along with the teres major muscle, the coracobrachialis muscle and the deltoid, make up the seven scapulohumeral muscles of the human body.-Function:The...

, received much criticism for quitting the fight.

Klitschko rebounded from his loss to Byrd by reeling off five victories in a row, earning himself a shot at WBC

World Boxing Council

heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis

Lennox Lewis

Lennox Claudius Lewis, CM, CBE is a retired boxer and the most recent British undisputed world heavyweight champion. He holds dual British and Canadian citizenship...

on June 21, 2003 in Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...

Klitschko Vs. Lennox Lewis

Klitschko, a 4–1 underdog, dominated the early going and stunned Lewis in the second round with two hard rights. In the third, Lewis landed a big right hand of his own that opened a deep cut above Klitschko's left eye. Klitschko was able to rally and Lewis, who had weighed in at his career heaviest for the fight, was breathing heavily after a few rounds. Both men traded big shots, and in the sixth Lewis got through with a hard uppercut. Before the seventh round, the ringside doctor inspected the wound and deemed it severe enough to threaten eye damage if struck again, stopping the fight despite Klitschko's pleas to continue. Klitschko was ahead on all three scorecards 58–56 (4 rounds to 2) at the time of the stoppage, but because the wound was a result of punches from Lewis and not a headbutt, Lewis won by technical knockout. Klitschko, despite the loss, gained international respect for fighting so well against the heavyweight champion for 6 rounds. Negotiations for a December 6 rematch began. After negotiations collapsed, Vitali defeated Kirk Johnson in WBC Eliminator bout on December 6 date, setting up a mandatory rematch with Lewis. In January 2004, WBC announced that it will strip Lewis of the belt if he lets pass a March 15 deadline to sign for a rematch with Vitali. Shortly thereafter, Lewis announced his retirement and vacated the title. For years after this fight, Klitschko would still occasionally call out Lewis, despite the fact that Lewis has been retired since early 2004, for a rematch.

WBC Heavyweight Champion

Around this time, the Klitschko brothers moved from Hamburg

Hamburg

-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...

, Germany

Germany

to Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles, California

.

In January 2004, they notified Universum that they would not re-sign when their contracts expired in April. Universum sued the brothers, arguing that their recent injuries had triggered a clause binding them beyond April. The suit was ultimately resolved in favour of the Klitschkos in November 2009.

Klitschko earned an 8th-round TKO victory over South African Corrie Sanders

Corrie Sanders

Cornelius "Corrie" Johannes Sanders is a South African former professional boxer. In 2003 he became the WBO heavyweight champion by defeating Wladimir Klitschko via a second-round knock out that is considered one of the biggest upsets in heavyweight boxing history and won Ring Magazine upset of...

on 24 April 2004, to capture the World Boxing Council

World Boxing Council

heavyweight championship which had been vacated by Lewis. Sanders had knocked out (2nd Round TKO) younger brother Wladimir on 8 March 2003. This fight was also for The Ring Magazine belt. Klitschko was rocked early by Sanders, but by using movement and strong punching he broke down Sanders and forced the referee to stop the bout.
Vitali Klitschko's first WBC title defense was against British boxer Danny Williams

Danny Williams (boxer)

Daniel "Danny" Williams is an English professional heavyweight boxer.-Amateur:As an amateur boxing out of the famous Lynn AC boxing gym in SE London, Williams learned his trade quickly, often sparring with the likes of clubmates Henry Akinwande and Derek Angol...

. Williams had become suddenly marketable from a KO over Mike Tyson

Mike Tyson

Michael Gerard "Mike" Tyson is a retired American boxer. Tyson is a former undisputed heavyweight champion of the world and holds the record as the youngest boxer to win the WBC, WBA and IBF world heavyweight titles, he was 20 years, 4 months and 22 days old...

in round 4. Klitschko scored a technical knockout against Williams in 8 rounds on 11 December 2004, while wearing an orange cloth to show support for the Ukrainian presidential opposition movement. Klitschko knocked Williams down in the 1st, 3rd, 7th, and 8th rounds before the fight was stopped. Immediately afterward, Klitschko dedicated his victory to democracy

Democracy

Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...

in his native Ukraine

Ukraine

Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...

, and also to the Ukrainian presidential candidate Viktor Yushchenko

Viktor Yushchenko

Viktor Andriyovych Yushchenko is a former President of Ukraine. He took office on January 23, 2005, following a period of popular unrest known as the Orange Revolution...

, whom he supported in the 26 December 2004, election revote

Ukrainian presidential election, 2004

The Ukrainian presidential election, 2004 was held on October 31, November 21 and December 26, 2004. The election was the fourth presidential election to take place in Ukraine following independence from the Soviet Union...

.

On 9 November 2005, Vitali Klitschko announced his retirement from professional boxing and vacated his title. He cited regrets about his suddenly mounting injuries, a desire to leave the sport while still on top, and political aspirations in his home country of Ukraine. Following his retirement, the WBC conferred "champion emeritus" status on Klitschko, and assured him he would become the mandatory challenger if and when he decided to return.

In the German Bild-Zeitung
Bild-Zeitung
The Bild is a German tabloid published by Axel Springer AG. The paper is published from Monday to Saturday, while on Sundays, Bild am Sonntag is published instead, which has a different style and its own editors...

, he announced on 24 January 2007 his comeback and requested to fight again. But because of a number of health problems, Klitschko backed out from a number of bouts scheduled for him.

Return bout against Samuel Peter

On 3 August 2008, the WBC

World Boxing Council

awarded Klitschko a chance to regain his WBC Heavyweight title. After Vitali's retirement his younger brother had established dominance in the division winning two of the four world titles available. The reigning WBC champion was Samuel Peter

Samuel Peter

Samuel Okon Peter , nicknamed "The Nigerian Nightmare," is a professional heavyweight boxer and the former WBC heavyweight champion....

(who had lost a close decision to Wladimir in a thrilling fight in 2005) At the time there was interest in a potential Peter vs Wladimir unification match. Instead Vitali took advantage of his champion emeritus status and secured a title challenge against Peter. The fight was arranged on 11 October 2008 at o2 world Berlin. It would be one of the most anticipated heavyweight fights in the past few years. Both men had a rightful claim to being the champion and the stakes for the future of the heavyweight division were high. Despite some questioning Vitali's decision to return after four years, he managed to regain his title in dominating fashion. Klitschko had Peter intimidated from the first round and stunned him with accurate hard punches. Klitschko kept the hard punching Nigerian off with an effective left jab and took control in the centre of the ring. Over eight rounds Klitschko completely dismantled and outfought the younger champion. After the eighth round, Peter slumped on his stool, shook his head and asked that the bout be stopped. With the Sam Peter victory, Klitschko technically became one of the few men to ever hold a version of the world heavyweight championship three times – WBO (1999–2000), WBC (2004–2005) WBC (2008–Present). Muhammad Ali

Muhammad Ali

Muhammad Ali is an American former professional boxer, philanthropist and social activist...

, Lennox Lewis

Lennox Lewis

Lennox Claudius Lewis, CM, CBE is a retired boxer and the most recent British undisputed world heavyweight champion. He holds dual British and Canadian citizenship...

, and Evander Holyfield

Evander Holyfield

Evander Holyfield is a professional boxer from the United States. He is a former undisputed world champion in both the cruiserweight and heavyweight divisions, earning him the nickname "The Real Deal"...

won the major heavyweight titles three times defeating recognized world-class fighters, whilst Klitschko and Michael Moorer

Michael Moorer

Michael Lee Moorer is a retired American boxer who is a former light heavyweight and heavyweight World Champion.-Biography:Moorer is a native of Monessen, Pennsylvania, which is in Southwestern Pennsylvania.-Professional career:...

held split titles, particularly the WBO belt which was only established in 1989 and has been frequently contested by lesser boxers. Neither Klitschko nor Moorer has ever been the undisputed champion (though Moorer was the lineal champion from April 94 to November 94), unlike Ali, Holyfield and Lewis.

Second reign as WBC champion

Since his comeback win over Samuel Peter, as of November 2011 Vitali Klitschko has defended his WBC heavyweight championship seven times. Despite having a four year hiatus from the sport Vitali has proven to be a remarkably effective and dominant heavyweight champion once again. He has fought the best challengers available in an attempt to prove himself the best heavyweight in the world. Alongside his brother Wladimir, he also fights on for their shared ambition of holding all four heavyweight championship belts together, an ambition that was realised on the 2nd of July 2011 when brother Wladimir defeated David Haye to win the WBA heavyweight championship.

Klitschko Vs. Gomez

On 21 March 2009, Klitschko defeated Juan Carlos Gomez

Juan Carlos Gomez

Juan Carlos Gómez is a professional boxer. A former Cuban amateur star, he is also a former WBC Cruserweight Champion and a devout Muslim. He lives in and boxes out of Orlando, Florida, USA.-Early years and defection:...

by TKO in the ninth round. Gomez tried to use his movement to thwart Vitali but seemed unable to cope with the power and physical strength of his opponent. As the rounds progressed Klitschko began imposing himself on Gomez more and more. Gomez soon became wary of Klitschko's power, and also began to tire physically. By the sixth round Vitali was in total control. The end came when the referee stopped the fight in the ninth round as Gomez appeared unable to withstand any more hits.

Klitschko Vs. Arreola

On 26 September, Klitschko earned a one- sided TKO victory over Chris Arreola

Chris Arreola

Cristobal Arreola is a Mexican-American professional Heavyweight boxer. Arreola is the former NABF, WBC Continental Americas, and current WBC FECOMBOX Heavyweight Champion. Chris is promoted by Goossen Tutor and trained by Henry Ramírez....

at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California when Arreola's trainer, Henry Ramirez, asked the referee to stop the fight. Arreola was considered at the time one of the division's hardest punchers; however, Klitschko kept Arreola at bay with his left jab and hit him almost at will with the right. Arreola had been influenced by Samuel Peter's defeat to Klitschko in 2008 in which Peter had tried to box from the outside. He therefore employed a gameplan which involved applying constant pressure to Vitali in order to force him into a high tempo fight. Despite his efforts the bout became one sided very quickly. Klitschko consistently proved himself faster, sharper and much fitter than Arreola.

Klitschko Vs. Johnson

On 12 December Vitali defeated Kevin Johnson

Kevin Johnson (boxer)

Kevin "Kingpin" Johnson is an American heavyweight boxer.-Amateur career:Johnson started boxing at the age of 18...

by unanimous decision winning almost every round. Johnson, a skillful fighter, tried to negate Klitschko's strength with angles and head movement. Though he proved hard to hit he failed to launch any sustained attack of his own. After the Johnson bout, Klitschko's camp began negotiations for a potential fight with fomer WBA Champion Nikolai Valuev

Nikolai Valuev

Nikolai Sergeyevich Valuev or Valuyev is a retired professional boxer and former two-time WBA heavyweight champion. In his most recent fight , he lost the title to David Haye via 12-round majority decision...

, but the match failed to materialise due to economic disagreements.

Klitschko Vs. Sosnowski

On May 29, 2010 Vitali Klitschko defeated Polish heavyweight contender Albert Sosnowski

Albert Sosnowski

Albert Dariusz Sosnowski is a Polish professional boxer who fights in the heavyweight division.-Debut fight:...

by KO at 2:30 in round 10 of 12
The fight took place at Veltins Arena, Gelsenkirchen

Gelsenkirchen

Gelsenkirchen is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the northern part of the Ruhr area. Its population in 2006 was c. 267,000....

, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany

Germany

.
Vitali Klitschko weighed in at 112 kg (247 lbs), while Sosnowski weighed in at 110 kg (242.5 lbs).
This was Vitali's 4th defence of the WBC heavyweight title.

Notes:

Voluntary defense of the WBC title
Sosnowski was the #11 ranked heavyweight according to the WBC prior to this bout
Sosnowski was knocked down by a right hand in the 10th round, prompting referee Jay Nady to immediately wave off the fight.

Klitschko Vs. Briggs

On 17 August 2010, it was announced that Klitschko would defend his WBC title against Shannon Briggs

Shannon Briggs

Shannon "The Cannon" Briggs is an American heavyweight boxer and actor. He is the former Lineal and WBO heavyweight champion.-Early life:...

on 16 October of that year. Klitschko completely dismantled his challenger with superior hand speed. Briggs struggled to land any meaningful punches, as Klitschko won every round decisively. After a few rounds Briggs was receiving a vicious and sustained beating which caused him serious facial injuries. Considering the beating he was receiving there was some suggestion that the referee should have stopped the bout during the last few rounds. Klitschko had retained his belt with official scores of 120–107, 120–105, and 120–107. During the post-fight interview, the American boxer said: “I’ve fought George Foreman, I’ve fought Lennox Lewis, and Vitali’s the best.” While Klitschko did not knock down Briggs, the latter collapsed after the fight and was hospitalized with facial fractures and a torn biceps.

Klitschko Vs. Solis

Klitschko's next fight was against mandatory challenger Odlanier Solis

Odlanier Solis

Odlanier Solís Fonte is a Cuban professional boxer. He won the Olympic Gold medal in Athens 2004 and was a three time winner at the World Amateur Boxing Championships.-Amateur career:...

. The bout

Vitali Klitschko vs. Odlanier Solís

Vitali Klitschko vs. Odlanier Solis was a heavyweight fight for the WBC heavyweight title. The fight was official confirmed on January 11. It took place on March 19, 2011...

was tentatively scheduled for March 2011. On 11 January, it was officially confirmed that the fight between Klitschko and Solis was going to take place in Cologne

Cologne

Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...

, Germany

Germany

on 19 March 2011. The fight lasted less than one whole round as a right hand to Solis's temple wobbled Solis, who then twisted his knee. Klitschko won by TKO.

Klitschko Vs. Adamek

Now aged 40, Klitschko retained his WBC heavyweight title against Tomasz Adamek

Tomasz Adamek

Tomasz Adamek is a Polish professional heavyweight boxer. His record is 44-2 .He is the former WBC world light heavyweight champion and the former IBF, IBO and The Ring magazine cruiserweight champion. As of the end of 2009, Ring Magazine has ranked Adamek as the 30th best boxer in the world...

on 10 September 2011 in Poland, winning by TKO in the 10th round. The referee stopped the bout after Adamek received punishing blows and was ruled out as he was no longer able to defend himself.

Klitschko Vs. Haye

Klitschko is currently in negotiations for a possible bout with former WBA Heavyweight title holder David Haye

David Haye

David Deron Haye is a retired English professional boxer,Haye is the former WBA heavyweight champion. He is also the former unified world cruiserweight champion, holding the WBA, WBC, WBO, and The Ring cruiserweight titles, and also the former European cruiserweight champion.- Amateur :Haye...

on March 3, 2012.

Political career

Klitschko began campaigning for mayor

Mayor of Kiev

Mayor of Kiev is the elected mayor of the municipality of Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, who is also normally automatically appointed as Head of the City's State Administration and Chair of the City Council....

of Kiev

Kiev

Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....

shortly after his retirement in 2005. He lost the 2006 mayoral election to Leonid Chernovetskyi

Leonid Chernovetskyi

Leonid Mykhaylovych Chernovetskyi is the incumbent Mayor of Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. Before his political career, he was a successful businessman, founder and controlling stakeholder of the Pravex Group and Pravex Bank, one of the largest banks in Ukraine.-Biography:Chernovetskyi quit school...

but placed second with 26% of the vote, ahead of the incumbent Oleksandr Omelchenko

Oleksandr Omelchenko

Oleksandr Oleksandrovych Omelchenko became the mayor of Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, in 1999. He lost his re-election bid in March 2006. Omelchenko is now member of the Verkhovna Rada elected on behalf of Our Ukraine–People's Self-Defense Bloc but expelled from that fraction in September 2011....

. Klitschko campaigned on an anti-corruption platform associated with Pora

Pora

PORA! , meaning IT'S TIME! in Ukrainian, is a civic youth organization and political party in Ukraine espousing nonviolent resistance and advocating increased national democracy...

party. Analysts stated his relatively late entry into the campaign might have cost him votes. Still, he was elected as a people's deputy to the Kiev City Council

Kiev City Council

Kiev City Council or Kyivrada is the city council of Kiev municipality, the highest representative body of the city community. The members of city council are directly elected by Kievans and the council is chaired by the Mayor of Kiev .The council meets in a 1950s City Council building...

. In the May 2008 Kiev local election

Kiev local election, 2008

Early mayoral and city council elections were contested in the Ukrainian capital Kiev on May 25, 2008. The snap election was called by the Ukrainian parliament, the Verkhovna Rada by a 246-5 vote on March 18 amid corruption allegations involving the incumbent Mayor Leonid Chernovetskyi...

he ran again and won 18% of the vote. His party, Vitaliy Klychko Bloc

Vitaliy Klychko Bloc

UDAR of Vitaliy Klychko UDAR of Vitaliy Klychko UDAR of Vitaliy Klychko (UDAR («УДАР»: stands for Ukrainian Democratic Alliance for Reform ) is a political party in Ukraine headed by Ukrainian professional heavyweight boxer and the current WBC world heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko....

, won 10.61% of the votes and 15 seats and again he was elected into the Kiev City Council. His campaign hired Rudy Giuliani

Rudy Giuliani

Rudolph William Louis "Rudy" Giuliani KBE is an American lawyer, businessman, and politician from New York. He served as Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001....

as a consultant for the campaign. In 2008 he was also appointed to the Ukrainian delegation of the Congress of the Council of Europe.

Klitschko became the leader of the political party Ukrainian Democratic Alliance for Reform in April 2010. During the 2010 Ukrainian local elections the party won representatives in (Ukrainian) municipalities and Oblast Councils (regional parliaments).

Political positions

Klitschko sees the European Union

European Union

The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...

as Ukraine's "model for our future political and economic development". Klitschko wants less corruption

Corruption in Ukraine

Corruption is a widespread and growing problem in Ukrainian society. In 2011's Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index Ukraine slipped to the 152th place of 183 countries and territories assessed. Ukraine has slipped from the 134th place in 2010 and the 118th place in 2007...

and more transparency in Ukrainian politics. He also advocates lower taxes to stimulate the economy of Ukraine

Economy of Ukraine

The economy of Ukraine is an emerging free market, with a gross domestic product that fell sharply for the first 10 years of its independence from the Soviet Union and then experienced rapid growth from 2000 until 2008...

.

In October 2011 Klitschko accused Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych

Viktor Yanukovych

Viktor Fedorovych Yanukovych is a Ukrainian politician who has been the President of Ukraine since February 2010.Yanukovych served as the Governor of Donetsk Oblast from 1997 to 2002...

and the Azarov Government

Azarov Government

The first Azarov Government was appointed on March 11, 2010 as part of the "Stability and Reform" coalition between the Party of Regions, Lytvyn Bloc and the Communist Party of Ukraine in the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament...

of "doing everything to manipulate the rules to stay in power longer".

Personal life

His father, Vladimir Rodionovich Klitschko (1947–2011), was a Soviet Air Force

VVS

VVS is a three letter acronym which may refer to:* Very Very Slightly Included, a way of describing the clarity of a diamond* Vulvar vestibulitis syndrome, a syndrome of vulvodynia associated with chronic disease* V. V. S...

major general

Major General

Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...

and a military attaché

Military attaché

A military attaché is a military expert who is attached to a diplomatic mission . This post is normally filled by a high-ranking military officer who retains the commission while serving in an embassy...

of Ukraine in Germany. He was also one of the commanders in charge of cleaning up the effects of the Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster

Chernobyl disaster

The Chernobyl disaster was a nuclear accident that occurred on 26 April 1986 at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine , which was under the direct jurisdiction of the central authorities in Moscow...

in 1986 and was afterward diagnosed with cancer. His mother is Nadezhda Ulyanovna. Klitschko is married to Natalia Egorova, a former athlete and model. They met in Kiev and got married on 26 April 1996. He has three children, Yegor-Daniel, Elizabeth-Victoria and Max (named after the former World Heavyweight Champion Max Schmeling

Max Schmeling

Maximillian Adolph Otto Siegfried Schmeling was a German boxer who was heavyweight champion of the world between 1930 and 1932. His two fights with Joe Louis in the late 1930s transcended boxing, and became worldwide social events because of their national associations...

).

In 1996, he graduated from the Pereyaslav-Khmelnytsky Pedagogical Institute (Ukraine) and was accepted into the postgraduate study program at Kiev University

Kiev University

Taras Shevchenko University or officially the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv , colloquially known in Ukrainian as KNU is located in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. It is the third oldest university in Ukraine after the University of Lviv and Kharkiv University. Currently, its structure...

. On 29 February 2000, he presented his doctoral thesis on "talent and sponsorship in sports" at the Kiev University of Physical Science and Sports, and his Ph.D.

Doctor of Philosophy

Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...

in Sports Science was conferred.

Both Vitali and his brother are avid chess players. Vitali is a friend of former world chess champion Vladimir Kramnik

Vladimir Kramnik

Vladimir Borisovich Kramnik is a Russian chess grandmaster. He was the Classical World Chess Champion from 2000 to 2006, and the undisputed World Chess Champion from 2006 to 2007...

and the two have played, with Kramnik always winning. Vitali has commented that "chess is similar to boxing. You need to develop a strategy, and you need to think two or three steps ahead about what your opponent is doing. You have to be smart. But what's the difference between chess and boxing? In chess, nobody is an expert, but everybody plays. In boxing everybody is an expert, but nobody fights."

Vitali and his brother also have been involved in charitable activities dedicated to support the needs of schools, churches and children. In 2002, the Klitschko brothers announced that they had agreed to work specifically for the UNESCO

UNESCO

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...

(the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) which supports more than 180 projects in 87 countries.

Professional boxing record

Tomasz Adamek

|||
||
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|42–2
|align=left|

Odlanier Solis

Odlanier Solís Fonte is a Cuban professional boxer. He won the Olympic Gold medal in Athens 2004 and was a three time winner at the World Amateur Boxing Championships.-Amateur career:...

Shannon Briggs

Shannon "The Cannon" Briggs is an American heavyweight boxer and actor. He is the former Lineal and WBO heavyweight champion.-Early life:...

Albert Sosnowski

Albert Dariusz Sosnowski is a Polish professional boxer who fights in the heavyweight division.-Debut fight:...

Kevin Johnson

Kevin Johnson (boxer)

Kevin "Kingpin" Johnson is an American heavyweight boxer.-Amateur career:Johnson started boxing at the age of 18...

Chris Arreola

Juan Carlos Gómez

Juan Carlos Gomez

Samuel Peter

Samuel Okon Peter , nicknamed "The Nigerian Nightmare," is a professional heavyweight boxer and the former WBC heavyweight champion....

|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|35–2
|align=left|

Danny Williams

Danny Williams (boxer)

|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|34–2
|align=left|

Corrie Sanders

|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|33–2
|align=left|

Kirk Johnson
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Loss
|32–2
|align=left|

Lennox Lewis

Lennox Claudius Lewis, CM, CBE is a retired boxer and the most recent British undisputed world heavyweight champion. He holds dual British and Canadian citizenship...

|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|32–1
|align=left|

Larry Donald

Larry Ali Donald is a professional heavyweight boxer, who competed for the United States at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain.-Professional career:...

|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|31–1
|align=left|

Vaughn Bean

Vaughn Bean is a former professional boxer.Nicknamed "Shake & Bake", Bean is known for making several arguably undeserved challenges for heavyweight titles, each time coming up short. Bean began his career with 27 victories over extremely limited competition, lining up a shot at IBF Heavyweight...

|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|30–1
|align=left|

Ross Puritty

Ross Puritty is a retired heavyweight professional boxer. A high-level journeyman and occasional heavyweight contender, Puritty is best remembered for his shocking upset of Wladimir Klitschko in 1998 that won him the WBC international Heavyweight title.- Professional Boxing career :Purrity made...

|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|29–1
|align=left|

Orlin Norris

Orlin Levance Norris, born October 4, 1965 in Lubbock, TX, is an American boxer who held the WBA cruiserweight title and fought in several noteworthy boxing matches in the 1980s and 1990s...

|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|28–1
|align=left|

Timo Hoffmann

Timo Hoffmann is a professional boxer who fights in the heavyweight division. He is probably best known as being the only fighter for nearly a decade who went to the distance with Vitali Klitschko...

|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Loss
|27–1
|align=left|

Chris Byrd

Chris Cornelius Byrd is a retired and former professional boxer. He is the former WBO and IBF heavyweight champion. His nickname is "Rapid Fire".- Early life :...

|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|27–0
|align=left|

Obed Sullivan

|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|26–0
|align=left|

Ed Mahone
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|25–0
|align=left|

Herbie Hide

Herbie Hide is a British boxer of Nigerian heritage from Norwich currently fighting in the cruiserweight class...

|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|24–0
|align=left|

Ismael Youla
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|23–0
|align=left|

Francesco Spinelli
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|22–0
|align=left|

Mario Schiesser
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|21–0
|align=left|

Ricardo Kennedy
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|20–0
|align=left|

Jose Ribalta
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|19–0
|align=left|

Dicky Ryan
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|18–0
|align=left|

Julius Francis

Julius Francis is a former British Heavyweight champion boxer - who participated in many noteworthy boxing matches in the 1990s and 2000s. In 2007 he also participated in a mixed martial arts bout....

|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|17–0
|align=left|

Levi Billups
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|16–0
|align=left|

Louis Monaco

Louis "The Facelifter" Monaco, is a professional boxer in the Heavyweight division and the former CAM Heavyweight Champion...

|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|15–0
|align=left|

Alben Belinski
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|14–0
|align=left|

Marcus Rhode
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|13–0
|align=left|

Anthony Willis
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|12–0
|align=left|

Herman Delgado
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|11–0
|align=left|

Gilberto Williamson
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|10–0
|align=left|

Will Hinton
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|9–0
|align=left|

Jimmy Haynes
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|8–0
|align=left|

Cleveland Woods
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|7–0
|align=left|

Derrick Roddy
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|6–0
|align=left|

Calvin Jones
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|5–0
|align=left|

Troy Roberts
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|4–0
|align=left|

Mike Acklie
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|3–0
|align=left|

Brian Sargent
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|2–0
|align=left|

Frantisek Sumina
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|
|- align=center
|Win
|1–0
|align=left|

Tony Bradham
|||
|
|align=left|
|align=left|

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Kickboxing

Boxing career

WBO title

Loss to Chris Byrd

Klitschko Vs. Lennox Lewis

WBC Heavyweight Champion

Return bout against Samuel Peter

Second reign as WBC champion

Klitschko Vs. Gomez

Klitschko Vs. Arreola

Klitschko Vs. Johnson

Klitschko Vs. Sosnowski

Klitschko Vs. Briggs

Klitschko Vs. Solis

Klitschko Vs. Adamek

Klitschko Vs. Haye

Political career

Political positions

Personal life

Professional boxing record

See also

External links