JAKARTA Ukrainian boxer and heavyweight world champion Oleksandr Usyk seem sensitive when he remembers his father. He even shed tears when he recalled the heartbreaking story his father had ever lived.
It happened when he chatted with former Manchester United football star Gary Neville recently for the latest episode of The Overlap. In that conversation Usyk had to struggle to contain his emotions as he spoke about his father's death.
"I often think about him and miss him so much. He was sick when I went to the Olympics in London," Usyk said as quoted by The Sun.
"I was preparing for the final, he didn't call me before the final or anything and we didn't talk for a few days."
"When I won and came back to my hotel room he called me. We talked on the phone for about an hour. We never spent an hour on the phone together before. It was as if he said goodbye to me," he continued.
The 36-year-old boxer then told how he missed serious pneumonia in his childhood. The pain even threatened his life.
He suffered from the disease for a year and had to undergo several times treatment at the hospital. After recovering, Usyk began to pursue regular exercise, both push-ups and runs.
In addition, he also started regularly playing football as the only sport in his village at that time and swimming and riding a horse. He then played soccer for the professional team.
"I played with them until my father died. God rested his soul. He was the one who always motivated me and forced me to practice and learn," said Usyk.
"Everything I have now comes from him. He gave me so much. Teaching me about priorities in life, namely family, sports, and education," he added.
Having a father with a military background made Usyk also taught how to fight with a knife. However, this lesson made Usyk's mother angry with her husband for fear of becoming a criminal.
Usyk currently holds the WBA (Super), IBF, and WBO heavyweight world titles after beating Anthony Joshua for the second time in August.
He is now getting closer to a major unification battle against Tyson Fury who is the WBC champion. Negotiations for the fight are still ongoing.
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