Oleksandr Usyk Boosts Ukrainian Morale at Olympics Amid War

Heavyweight boxing champion Oleksandr Usyk visited Paris to support Ukrainian athletes at the 2024 Olympics. Despite the ongoing war in Ukraine, Usyk emphasized the importance of their presence and expressed hope for more medals. Usyk, who has tattoos of Olympic rings, praised Ukrainian fencer Olga Kharlan for winning a bronze medal.

Heavyweight boxing champion Oleksandr Usyk has arrived in Paris to rally behind Ukrainian athletes at the 2024 Olympics, even as war rages back home.

Usyk visited the Ukrainian House in Paris on Monday, where he watched Ukrainian fencer Olga Kharlan clinch a bronze medal in women's individual saber, Ukraine's first medal at the Olympics.

“My personal wish was, and I probably knew, that Olga is one of those people who would bring a medal for Ukraine,” Usyk told the Associated Press just minutes after Kharlan's victory.

With ongoing competitions, Usyk expressed optimism for more Ukrainian wins, stressing the significance of their participation amid daily missile strikes, damaged sports infrastructure, and Russian occupation.

“We are at war. But our athletes still came,” he said. “They are fighting.” Usyk, who bears Olympic ring tattoos on both arms, one marked “London 2012” where he won heavyweight gold, said.

Usyk also voiced support for renowned Ukrainian boxer Oleksandr Khyzhniak, who is attempting to redeem his Tokyo 2020 gold-medal loss at the Paris Games. “He has unfinished business that he has set for himself, which is the Olympic gold,” Usyk declared. “Alex is striving for it.”