Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury may be rivals in the ring, but they have a lot in common away from boxing.
The Ukrainian, 37, was crowned undisputed heavyweight champion after winning a brutal world title fight against the Brit, 35, in Saudi Arabia earlier this month. Despite their conflict leading up to the clash, they shared a heartfelt moment afterwards, with Tyson inviting Usyk and his family to go on holiday with his Fury clan.
He was overheard saying: "I'd like to come to Ukraine with my family and have a holiday with your family and you can come to my house and have a holiday with me." Usyk responded positively, saying: "No problem, my friend." The boxers are both family men and have the support of their wives and kids - but who are the key players in Oleksandr's camp?
Oleksandr and Kateryna have been married since 2009 (usyk_kate1505/Instagram)
The couple are from Ukraine and share four kidsSupportive wife
Usyk has been married to his wife Yekaterina, commonly known as Kateryna, since 2009, and they were reportedly close for several years before they tied the knot. Kateryna, 36, was born in Ukraine and is a model. She also runs the foundation that belongs to the champ.
Unlike Paris Fury, she tends to keep her family life out of the spotlight and stays out of the public eye. But she has proven herself as the boxer's biggest fan and always appears at ringside to cheer him on.
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After Usyk faced Daniel Dubois last year, his promoter Alex Krassyuk revealed Kateryna was shouting "Beat the s*** out of him" at Oleksandr after what was judged to be a low blow from the British fighter.
Kateryna is a model and runs her husband's foundation (usyk_kate1505/Instagram)In 2022, Kateryna made a rare admission about her husband's physical state during the Russian attack on Ukraine. She told Ukrainian station PravdaTUT: "Sasha lost 10 kilograms in a week of the war. He was so horrified, in such shock, he was so torn apart."
The couple and their young family were forced to flee their home in Vorzel, Bucha, when Vladimir Putin's troops attacked. Usyk said in June 2022: "My children are asking: 'Daddy, why do they want to kill us?' I don't know how to answer that. My family are not in Ukraine now but a lot of people I know and a lot of my close friends are inside the country.
"I am in touch with them every day, I am asking them for updates. I didn't want to leave the country. I want to live there, still. Straight after the fight I will go back to Ukraine."
Sacrifice for boxing
The couple has four children together: Kyrylo, Mykhalio, Yelizaveta and their newborn daughter Maria, who was born in February. Usyk was unable to be there for her birth as he was holed up in his Spanish training camp preparing for the clash against Fury, which was later postponed. He said at the time: "I sacrificed all the dates we used to spend with my family.
"Christmas, New Year, my birthday, my son's birthday, the birthday of my second son and the birth of my daughter. I was supposed to be somewhere around my wife, not in the room, but walking around waiting for her to give birth to my daughter. I want to go back home, to hug my daughter, to thank my wife, to spend two or three days at home and then come back to camp."
The children didn't understand why they had to flee their home (usyk_kate1505/Instagram)
Kateryna is 36 years old and a glamorous mum-of-four (usyk_kate1505/Instagram)Revealing the moment his daughter was born, Usyk said: "I was already in the ring when the news occurred, when I finished the last round. Sergey [Lapin, Usyk's team manager] came up to me, smiling and feeling uncomfortable. He said we had some sort of news; I smiled and went back to the training, working with the boxing bag.
"Even my wife found out first because I was training. After sparring I was in the ring and information started to come through and I had a lot of messages on my phone. But my wife was not angry that I had missed the birth. It's my job and she is very smart. I am at my training camp and my wife says, 'No problem, you have to work, Alex'."
Heartbreaking loss
Usyk sadly lost his father just days after he won gold at the 2012 Olympics in London. The Ukrainian bounced back against Clemente Russo in the final to top the podium after coming up short to the Italian in the quarter-finals four years earlier in Beijing.
The heavyweight champion wanted to show his dad his new medal and arrived in a supercar, but his decision to wait three days for the car to arrive meant he missed his father's last moments. "He watched me become Olympic champion, but I didn't make it back in time to show him the gold medal," Usyk told TNT Sports.
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Usyk broke down in tears recalling the moment he lost his father in 2012"When I arrived he was already lying in the coffin. I handed him the medal, put it in his dead hand and then left the room. I was on my way back from London, I was already in Ukraine, three more days and I would have been home but I was waiting for a supercar to arrive. I wanted to bring it with me and show him what a cool car I had. My mum called me at 3am to tell me the news."
"Sometimes he comes to me the day before the fight. Don't cry, you're a man," Usyk jokingly said as he wiped tears from his eyes. "Some people say men shouldn't cry, but men cry with very strong tears. Yes, sometimes he comes the day before the fight and smiles," Usyk added.
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