Wladimir Klitschko

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Wladimir Klitschko
Statistics
Real name	Volodymyr Klychko
Nickname(s)	Dr. Steelhammer
Rated at	Heavyweight
Height	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Nationality	Ukrainian
Birth date	25 March 1976 (1976-03-25) (age 33)
Birth place	Semipalatinsk, Kazakh SSR, Soviet Union
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	56
Wins	53
Wins by KO	47
Losses	3

Olympic medal record
Competitor for  Ukraine
Men's boxing
Gold	1996 Atlanta	Super heavyweight
European Amateur Championships
Silver	1996 Vejle	Super heavyweight

Wladimir Klitschko (pronounced /ˈvlædɨmɪr ˈklɪtʃkoʊ/; Ukrainian: Володимир Кличко, Volodymyr Klychko; born 25 March 1976, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan) is a Ukrainian heavyweight boxer. Klitschko currently holds the IBF, WBO, IBO and Ring Magazine world heavyweight titles. His elder brother, Vitali Klitschko, is the current WBC world heavyweight champion.

Biography

He was born in Semipalatinsk, Kazakh SSR (now Kazakhstan). Though a major celebrity in his former adopted home of Germany, he moved with his older brother Vitali to Beverly Hills in 2004. Their father, Vladimir Rodionovich, was a Soviet Air Force Colonel. Their mother is Nadezhda Ulyanovna.

In the summer of 1996, Klitschko finished Pereyaslav-Khmelnitsky Pedagogical Institute (Ukraine) and was accepted in the postgraduate study program of Kiev University. On 18 January 2001 in a conference hall of Kiev University of physical science and sports, Klitschko presented his doctorate dissertation and was awarded a Ph.D. in Sports Science. Klitschko speaks four languages: English, Russian, Ukrainian, and German. At the beginning of his professional career, he began spelling his name Wladimir. The Ukrainian version of his name is Volodymyr (Володимир), which in Russian is Vladimir (Владимир).

Boxing career

Amateur career

In 1993, Klitschko won the Junior European Championships as a heavyweight. In 1994, he received 2nd place at the Junior World Championships in Istanbul, Turkey. In 1995, he won the gold medal at the Military Championships in Ariccia, Italy, defeating Luan Krasniqi, who he had lost to in the third round of the World Championships in Berlin, Germany earlier that year. In 1996, he captured 2nd place as a Super Heavyweight at the European Championships in Vejle, Denmark.

Known as "The Steel Hammer," Klitschko first achieved world attention at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. He defeated Paea Wolfgramm to win the Super-Heavyweight gold medal. He is now announced as "Dr. Steel Hammer," a name more in the vein of his brother, Vitali, who goes by "Dr. Ironfist."

Professional career

Klitschko turned professional with Universum Box-Promotion in Hamburg, Germany under the tutelage of Fritz Sdunek. On 14 October 2000, in Cologne's Kölnarena (Germany), Klitschko won the WBO Heavyweight Championship from American Chris Byrd. After five successful defenses of the WBO belt, Klitschko suffered a 2nd round TKO loss to South African Corrie Sanders on 8 March 2003, in Hannover, Germany.

After winning two minor bouts in Germany and enlisting the services of legendary boxing trainer Emmanuel Steward, Klitschko again fought for the vacated WBO title on 10 April 2004, in Las Vegas, against Lamon Brewster. Klitschko sent Brewster to the canvas in the fourth round; however, things turned around in the fifth when Brewster began landing punches. Near the end of the round, Klitschko was floored by a right hand. Barely beating the count, Klitschko fell back to the canvas looking exhausted.

Wladimir Klitschko boxing Hasim Rahman, 2008

On 22 April 2006, in Mannheim, Germany, Klitschko again defeated Chris Byrd, this time by technical knockout, in a contest for the IBF Heavyweight Championship. Referee Wayne Kelly stopped the fight in the seventh round after a knockdown—Byrd beat the count, but his face was battered and bloody, and the fight was waved off. Klitschko then defeated mandatory challenger Ray Austin on 10 March 2007, at the SAP Arena in Mannheim, Germany by a second-round knockout with four consecutive left hooks to Austin's head. Klitschko did not use his right hand once during the fight, doing all his work with his left jab and left hook. Klitschko then avenged one of his previous losses as he defeated Lamon Brewster on 7 July 2007, in Cologne, Germany. Brewster's corner asked the referee to stop the fight at the end of the sixth round. It was later revealed that Klitschko fought most of the fight with a broken middle finger on his left hand.

Klitschko defeated WBO Heavyweight Champion Sultan Ibragimov at Madison Square Garden in New York City on 23 February 2008 to unify the IBF and WBO heavyweight titles. The Klitschko-Ibragimov fight was the first heavyweight unification since Holyfield-Lewis in 1999.

On 12 July 2008, at the Color Line Arena in Hamburg, Germany, Klitschko defeated Tony Thompson by eleventh round knockout.

Klitschko was scheduled to defend his titles against Alexander Povetkin later in 2008,^[1] but on 25 October, Povetkin withdrew from the fight due to an ankle injury. Instead, Klitschko faced Hasim Rahman on 13 December 2008 and won by TKO. This was the third time Klitschko fought at the SAP Arena in Mannheim, Germany. He dominated the fight, winning every round while making good use of his left jab. The referee finally called a stop to the contest in the 7th round after Rahman failed to respond to a series of good shots.

The brothers have been quoted saying that it is only a matter of time until they unify the WBA title belt which is currently held by Nikolai Valuev, who is currently promoted by Don King. If they achieve this feat, the Klitschko brothers will become the first brothers in heavyweight boxing history to simultaneously hold all of the belts.

On 20 June 2009, Klitschko retained the IBF, WBO, IBO world heavyweight titles and also won the vacant Ring Magazine heavyweight title by defeating Ruslan Chagaev when Chagaev retired after an onslaught of punches towards the end of the ninth round. As Chagaev was WBA champion in recess, the title was not on the line.

Other interests

Klitschko appeared with Lennox Lewis in the motion picture Ocean's Eleven. He is an avid chess player, wind-surfer, golfer, and humanitarian. Both Klitschko brothers have been involved in charitable activities dedicated to supporting the needs of children around the world. Both brothers have formed their own charities that contribute to children in need in Africa and South America. They won humanitarian awards for their "Fight For Peace" and "Sport for Good" projects in 2002 and 2007. In 2002, the Klitschko brothers announced that they had agreed to work specifically for UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization), which supports more than 180 projects in 87 countries.

Klitschko is also a passionate golfer and was seen playing in the Dunhill Links Championship in Scotland. The tournament was played over three courses in 2008 including St Andrews, Carnoustie, and Kingsbarns in Fife.

Klitschko was named curator of the Ukrainian pavilion at the 2009 Venice Biennale.^[2]

Professional boxing record

53 Wins (47 knockouts), 3 Losses (3 knockouts), 0 Draws[3] Res. Record Opponent Type Rd., Time Date Location Notes Win 53-3 Ruslan Chagaev RTD 9 (12), 3:00 2009-06-20 Gelsenkirchen, Germany IBF, WBO, IBO, Ring Magazine heavyweight title. WBA heavyweight title held by Chagaev was not on the line as he was champion in recess. Klitschko came out working almost exclusively with his jab and mixed in a few straight hands sparingly. A straight right preceded by a jab caught Chagaev on the chin and sent him to the canvas in the second round for the first time in his professional career. He was up quickly and received a mandatory eight-count. Following the fourth round, Chagaev was visibly bleeding from the mouth, an obvious result of Klitschko's persistent one-two combinations that continually snapped at the head of Chagaev. In the fifth round, action was temporarily paused as Klitschko was allowed time to recover from a punch that strayed too low. Chagaev was warned for snapping Klitschko with a left hook after the bell at the conclusion of the sixth round. Early in the seventh round, a straight right hand from Klitschko caused a cut above the left eyebrow of Chagaev. A barrage of power punches late in the ninth round stunned Chagaev but he managed to keep his feet. Chagaev retired on his stool shortly after the end of the ninth round after his corner aided by advice from the ringside doctor evaluated his health status and decided that he could no longer continue. Win 52-3 Hasim Rahman TKO 7 (12), 0:44 2008-12-13 Mannheim, Germany IBF, WBO, IBO heavyweight title. Klitschko came out with a stiff left jab, controlling the fight and knocking Rahman's head back. A right hand combination shook Rahman in the first round. In the second round, Klitschko had Rahman backed into the ropes and was launching off with his right hand and jabs. A combination sent Rahman down at the start of the sixth round and Rahman was able to beat the count. Klitschko went right after Rahman and backed him up against the ropes and punished him with a variety of punches. Klitschko rocked Rahman with a combination of punches in the seventh round, leading to the referee stopping the fight. Win 51-3 Tony Thompson KO 11 (12), 1:38 2008-07-12 Hamburg, Germany IBF, WBO, IBO heavyweight title. Klitschko was cut by a punch and Thompson by an accidental headbutt in the 2nd round. Klitschko floored Thompson with a right hand in the 11th round and Thompson didn't beat the count. Win 50-3 Sultan Ibragimov UD 12 (12), 3:00 2008-02-23 New York, United States IBF, WBO, IBO heavyweight title. First heavyweight title unification since Lewis-Holyfield II in 1999. Win 49-3 Lamon Brewster RTD 6 (12), 3:00 2007-07-07 Cologne, Germany IBF, IBO heavyweight title. Klitschko broke his left middle finger in the first round. Brewster's trainer, James (Buddy) McGirt, asked the referee to stop the fight after the sixth round. Win 48-3 Ray Austin TKO 2 (12), 1:23 2007-03-10 Mannheim, Germany IBF, IBO heavyweight title. Klitschko connected with several consecutive left hooks that sent Austin crashing face first to the canvas in round two. Austin got up at the count of nine, clutching the ropes, but referee Eddie Cotton waved off the fight. Win 47-3 Calvin Brock TKO 7 (12), 2:10 2006-11-11 New York, United States IBF, IBO heavyweight title. Klitschko suffered a cut over the left eye from an unintentional headbutt in the sixth round. Brock was knocked down in the seventh round, and although he barely beat the count, Referee Kelly concluded he was in no condition to continue. Win 46-3 Chris Byrd TKO 7 (12), 0:41 2006-04-22 Mannheim, Germany IBF, IBO heavyweight title. Byrd was knocked down by a right hand in the fifth round. A right hand knocked Byrd down in the seventh and opened up a large cut near the eye that bled heavily. Byrd made the count but referee Kelly stepped in to stop the bout. Win 45-3 Samuel Peter UD 12 (12), 3:00 2005-09-24 Atlantic City, NJ, United States NABF heavyweight title, IBF & WBO Heavyweight Title Eliminators. Klitschko down twice in the 5th and once in the 10th. Win 44-3 Eliseo Castillo TKO 4 (10), 2:51 2005-04-23 Dortmund, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany Win 43-3 DaVarryl Williamson TD 5 (10), 3:00 2004-10-02 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Fight stopped due to a Klitschko cut caused by an accidental headbutt. Klitschko down in 4th. Loss 42-3 Lamon Brewster TKO 5 (12), 3:00 2004-04-10 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Vacant WBO heavyweight title. Brewster down in round 4, Klitschko took a count in round 5. Byrd stops the contest at the end of the 5th. Fight was for the vacant title after the reigning champ, Corrie Sanders, had relinquished the belt in order to fight Vitali Klitschko for the WBC title. Win 42-2 Danell Nicholson TKO 4 (12), 3:00 2003-12-20 Hannover, Germany WBA Inter-Continental heavyweight title. Win 41-2 Fabio Eduardo Moli KO 1 (12), 1:49 2003-08-30 Munich, Germany vacant WBA Inter-Continental heavyweight title. Loss 40-2 Corrie Sanders TKO 2 (12), 0:27 2003-03-08 Hannover, Germany WBO Heavyweight Title. Klitschko down four times, twice in first round, and twice in round two. This fight was named The Ring Magazine Upset of the Year for 2003. Win 40-1 Jameel McCline TKO 10 (12), 3:00 2002-12-07 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States WBO Heavyweight Title. McCline down in 10th. McCline corner stops the bout after 10th. Win 39-1 Ray Mercer TKO 6 (12), 1:08 2002-06-29 Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States WBO Heavyweight Title. Mercer was knocked down in the first round by two left hooks. Mercer suffered a cut over the right eye by a lead hook in the 5th round. Referee Randy Neumann stopped the fight after a barrage of unanswered power punches in the 6th round. Win 38-1 Francois Botha TKO 8 (12), 0:47 2002-03-16 Stuttgart, Germany WBO Heavyweight Title. Klitschko won every round and knocked Botha down in the 8th round with a left hook. Win 37-1 Charles Shufford TKO 6 (12) 2001-08-04 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States WBO Heavyweight Title. Shufford was knocked down three times Win 36-1 Derrick Jefferson TKO 2 (12) 2001-03-24 Munich, Germany WBO Heavyweight Title. Jefferson was knocked down three times. Win 35-1 Chris Byrd UD 12 (12) 2000-10-14 Cologne, Germany WBO Heavyweight Title. Byrd down in the ninth and eleventh rounds. Win 34-1 Monte Barrett TKO 7 (10), 2:40 2000-07-15 London, England Barrett was knocked down once in the first round, once in the fourth round and three times in the seventh round. Win 33-1 David Bostice TKO 2 (12), 1:30 2000-04-29 New York, New York, United States WBA Inter-Continental heavyweight title. Bostice was knocked down four times - twice in the first round and twice in the second round. This was Klitschko's first appearance on HBO. Win 32-1 Paea Wolfgramm KO 1 (12), 1:30 2000-03-18 Hamburg, Germany Vacant WBC International heavyweight title. Rematch of the 1996 Super Heavyweight Olympic Finals (Won by Klitschko). Win 31-1 Lajos Eros KO 2 (12) 1999-12-04 Hannover, Germany EBU (European) heavyweight title. WBA Inter-Continental heavyweight title Win 30-1 Phil Jackson KO 2 (10), 1:59 1999-11-12 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win 29-1 Axel Schulz TKO 8 (12) 1999-09-25 Cologne, Germany Vacant EBU (European) heavyweight title. WBA Inter-Continental heavyweight title. Schulz down twice in the 8th round. Win 28-1 Joseph Chingangu TKO 5 (12) 1999-07-17 Düsseldorf, Germany Vacant WBA Inter-Continental heavyweight title. Chingangu quit on his stool after round 4. Win 27-1 Tony LaRosa TKO 1 (8), 2:57 1999-05-22 Budapest, Hungary Win 26-1 Everett Martin TKO 8 (8) 1999-04-24 Munich, Germany Win 25-1 Zoran Vujecic KO 1 (8), 1:02 1999-02-13 Stuttgart, Germany Loss 24-1 Ross Puritty TKO 11 (12) 1998-12-05 Kiev, Ukraine WBC International heavyweight title. In round 10 an exhausted Klitschko was knocked down, and in round 11 Puritty kept pounding Klitschko, which caused his trainer Fritz Sdunek to jump into the ring and stop the fight. Win 24-0 Donnell Wingfield KO 1 (8), 1:04 1998-11-14 Munich, Germany Win 23-0 Eli Dixon KO 3 (10) 1998-10-03 Augsburg, Germany Win 22-0 Steve Pannell KO 2 (10), 0:27 1998-09-19 Oberhausen, Germany Both Klitschko and Panell were down in the 1st round Win 21-0 Carlos Monroe TKO 6 (10) 1998-08-06 Marksville, Louisiana, United States Monroe went down in round 6 from a straight right Win 20-0 Najee Shaheed KO 1 (12) 1998-07-10 Munich, Germany WBC International heavyweight title Win 19-0 Cody Koch KO 4 (12) 1998-05-23 Offenburg, Germany WBC International heavyweight title Win 18-0 Everett Martin UD 8 (8) 1998-03-14 Hamburg, Germany Win 17-0 Marcus McIntyre KO 3 (12) 1998-02-14 Stuttgart, Germany vacant WBC International heavyweight title Win 16-0 Derrick Lampkins TKO 1 (8) 1997-12-20 Offenburg, Germany Win 15-0 Ladislav Husarik TKO 3 (8) 1997-12-13 Hamburg, Germany Win 14-0 Jerry Halstead TKO 2 (8) 1997-12-06 Offenbach, Germany Win 13-0 Marcos Gonzalez KO 2 (8) 1997-10-11 Cottbus, Germany Win 12-0 James Pritchard TKO 3 (8) 1997-09-20 Aachen, Germany Win 11-0 Biko Botowamungu TKO 5 (8), 2:02 1997-08-23 Stuttgart, Germany Win 10-0 Gilberto Williamson TKO 3 (8) 1997-07-12 Hagen, Germany Win 9-0 Salvador Maciel KO 1 (8) 1997-06-27 Offenburg, Germany Win 8-0 Paul Ashley KO 2 (8), 1:25 1997-06-13 Oberhausen, Germany Win 7-0 Mark Wills KO 1 (8), 2:58 1997-05-10 Frankfurt, Germany Win 6-0 Mark Young RTD 2 (6), 3:00 1997-04-12 Aachen, Germany Win 5-0 Carlos Monroe DQ 6 (6) 1997-02-15 Cottbus, Germany Monroe was deducted a point in the 4th round for holding. He was disqualified in the 6th round for a headbutt which cut Klitschko on the left cheekbone. Win 4-0 Troy Weida TKO 3 (6), 0:36 1997-01-25 Stuttgart, Germany Win 3-0 Bill Corrigan TKO 1 (4), 1:21 1996-12-21 Frankfurt, Germany Win 2-0 Exum Speight TKO 2 (4), 1:54 1996-11-30 Wiener Neustadt, Austria Win 1-0 Fabian Meza KO 1 (4), 1:35 1996-11-16 Hamburg, Germany References ^ Wladimir Klitschko's company wins purse bid for Dec. 13 fight ^ Venice Biennale: The 'Olympic Games of the art world' ^ "Wladimir Klitschko's career boxing record". Boxrec.com. http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=7035&cat=boxer. Retrieved on 2008-09-16.  External links Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Wladimir Klitschko "The Official Site of Klitschko Brothers" (in German/English/Ukrainian/Russian). http://www.klitschko.com/.  Wladimir Klitschko Fight-by-Fight Career Record Professional boxing record for Wladimir Klitschko from Boxrec Biofile Q&A interview with Klitschko {http://www.boxinginsider.com/biofiles/wladimir-klitschko/} Vacant Title last held by Ike Ibeabuchi WBC International Heavyweight Champion 14 February 1998 - 5 December 1998 Succeeded by Ross Puritty Vacant Title last held by Vitali Klitschko EBU Heavyweight Champion 25 September 1999 - 2000 Vacant Title next held by Vitali Klitschko Preceded by Chris Byrd WBO Heavyweight Champion 14 October 2000 – 8 March 2003 Succeeded by Corrie Sanders IBF Heavyweight Champion 22 April 2006 – present Succeeded by Incumbent Preceded by Lennox Lewis Retired IBO Heavyweight Champion 22 April 2006 – present Succeeded by Incumbent Preceded by Sultan Ibragimov WBO Heavyweight Champion 23 February 2008 – present Succeeded by Incumbent Vacant Title last held by Vitali Klitschko The Ring Heavyweight Champion June 20, 2009 - present Incumbent v • d • e Olympic Boxing Champions in Men's Super Heavyweight 1984 – 2008: over 91 kg 1984: Tyrell Biggs (USA) • 1988: Lennox Lewis (CAN) • 1992: Roberto Balado (CUB) • 1996: Wladimir Klitschko (UKR) • 2000: Audley Harrison (GBR) • 2004: Aleksandr Povetkin (RUS) • 2008: Roberto Cammarelle (ITA) Persondata NAME Klitschko, Wladimir ALTERNATIVE NAMES Володимир Володимирович Кличко SHORT DESCRIPTION Ukrainian boxer DATE OF BIRTH 25 March 1976 PLACE OF BIRTH Semipalatinsk, Soviet Union DATE OF DEATH PLACE OF DEATH