On the evening of September 17, there was an incident at Krakow airport involving Ukrainian boxer Oleksandr Usyk, who was detained while trying to board a plane to Valencia, Spain. Usyk planned to start preparations for a rematch against Tyson Fury. Details of the incident vary from source to source.
The first version
According to ESPN, Usyk was detained after an airline representative determined that he and his coach Serhii Lapin were unfit to travel. The source noted that the boxer and his trainer were exhausted after an almost 14-hour journey from Kyiv. According to the source, Usyk tried to explain the situation, but the language barrier and his categoricalness led to his detention.
Second Version
Polish promoter Andrzej Wasilewski claims that the detention occurred due to the refusal of the airport services to let Comrade Usyk on board for "unexplained reasons". As a result, the boxer refused to fly alone and opposed the detention of his friend, which led to the arrest of both of them. The promoter clarified that it was Usyk's coach, Serhiy Lapin.
After Usyk's detention, Ukrainian athlete and politician Zhan Beleniuk reported on the incident. The boxer's wife, Kateryna Usyk, said that everything is fine and the athlete will soon explain everything. The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs reacted to the detention by sending the Consul General of Ukraine to Krakow to investigate the circumstances. The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyi, expressed his indignation at the situation and announced that Usyk had been released.
