VASILIY Lomachenko is up for a fight of a lifetime.
The three-division world champion and Olympic gold medal-winning boxer has reportedly enlisted in a home defense unit as Russia escalated its invasion of his home country of Ukraine.
On his Facebook page, Lomachenko uploaded a photo of himself wearing military gear, posing with a local politician. According to the post (confirmed by several Ukrainian outlets), the 34-year-old boxer has joined the Belgorod-Dniester Territorial Defense Battalion.
“The Belgorod-Dniester Territorial Defense Battalion has been formed and armed," read the caption (translated from Ukrainian). "Boxer Vasyl Lomachenko is in the defense, said Mayor Vitaliy Hrazhdan."
Lomachenko uploaded his post as the invasion of Ukraine by its belligerent neighbor Russia reached its fourth day of fighting.
Sports world condemns Russian invasion
The boxing champ joins many ordinary citizens who have decided to take up arms against Russia, including many from among the thousands of refugees who initially fled to Poland, reported The Guardian.
Winter Olympian Vladyslav Heraskevych is currently at the front lines, while boxing champion brothers Vitaliy (currently mayor of Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital city) and Wladimir Klitschko appeared on a video pledging their defense of the homeland.
After four days of fighting, the Ukrainian defense minister declared that “Ukraine is not falling,” citing that defense forces have killed or wounded some 4,300 Russian soldiers. Negotiators from the two warring countries will be meeting for peace talks at the Belarusian border. But Russian president Vladimir Putin has also ordered his nuclear forces to move to a higher state of alert.
Many in the sports world have joined in the condemnation of Russia. FIFA condemned the country’s actions and banned the playing of the country’s anthem or the display of the Russian flag, while several European teams have refused to play against the Russian side. Even Russian tennis star Andrey Rublev wrote “No War Please” on a TV camera following a victory in Dubai.
Ukrainian athletes have also urged the International Olympic Committee and the International Paralympic Committee to suspend the Russian and Belarusian Olympic committees.
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