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105-494: Wladimir Klitschko (born 25 March 1976) is a Ukrainian former professional boxer who competed from 1996 to 2017. He held multiple heavyweight world championships between 2000 and 2015, including unified titles between 2008 and 2015. During this time he also held the International Boxing Organization (IBO) and Ring magazine titles. A strategic and intelligent boxer, Klitschko is considered to be one of

210-564: A "golden age" of popularity for professional boxing in the 1920s. They were also responsible for the first live radio broadcast of a title fight (Dempsey v. Georges Carpentier , in 1921). In the United Kingdom, Jack Solomons ' success as a fight promoter helped re-establish professional boxing after the Second World War and made the UK a popular place for title fights in the 1950s and 1960s. In

315-634: A Super Heavyweight at the European Championships in Vejle , Denmark losing to Alexei Lezin in the finals. He defeated Lezin later that year in the semi-finals at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta . He had an amateur record of 134–6. He first achieved world attention at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta , Georgia. He defeated Paea Wolfgramm to win the Super-Heavyweight gold medal . Below are

420-502: A clear advantage over the other, regardless of how minute the advantage. Modern boxing rules were initially derived from the Marquess of Queensberry rules which mainly outlined core aspects of the sport, such as the establishment of rounds and their duration, as well as the determination of proper attire in the ring such as gloves and wraps . These rules did not, however, provide unified guidelines for scoring fights and instead left this in

525-562: A clinch. While in the clinch, Sanders landed another left hook that send Klitschko to the canvas. Klitschko got up but was dropped again almost immediately. The following round, Sanders continued his assault on a visibly hurt Klitschko, dropping him twice more at the beginning of the round. The referee waived it off after the fourth knockdown. The fight was named Upset of the Year by The Ring for 2003. After winning two minor bouts in Germany and enlisting

630-423: A feared, hard-hitting fighter like Samuel Peter would help him to regain his stock and become mandatory challenger for two heavyweight belts. The first four rounds were tentative, with Klitschko working behind the jab, not allowing Peter to close the distance. At the end of the third, Peter staggered Klitschko with a powerful left hook. He hurt Klitschko again in the fifth with another left hook, sending Klitschko to

735-473: A fight against Ray Mancini . Studies following the fight have concluded that his brain had become more susceptible to damage after the 12th round. Exactly three months after the fatal fight, the WBC reduced the number of their championship fights to 12 three-minute rounds with 1 minute in between, making the total bout 47 minutes long. If the bout "goes the distance", meaning that the scheduled time has fully elapsed,

840-616: A gold medal in the super-heavyweight division. After turning professional later that year, he defeated Chris Byrd in 2000 to win the World Boxing Organization (WBO) heavyweight title. Klitschko's first reign as champion ended in an upset knockout loss to Corrie Sanders in 2003, which was followed by another upset knockout loss to Lamon Brewster in 2004. It was during this time that Klitschko hired Emanuel Steward as his trainer, which began an eight-year partnership that lasted until Steward's death in 2012. In particular, Steward

945-447: A group of approximately 40 people associated with Brewster's manager Sam Simon bet from $ 50,000 to $ 100,000 on Brewster's victory. Members of Klitschko's team also pointed out that shortly before the fight, a security camera recorded a moment when two people entered Klitschko's booth and were there for four minutes. These people had badges, but weren't members of Wladimir's team. Wladimir's brother Vitali claimed that during registration of

1050-458: A half mile] sprints, each under 3 minutes, with a minute rest between each one. I timed every one and every one was under 3 minutes. I never saw a heavyweight do anything even close to that. They work their asses off. To be able to do that, two 250-pound guys – whew. They're two of the best athletes I've ever trained." — Freddie Roach , who trained both the Klitschko brothers and Mike Tyson , on

1155-468: A late replacement for Donovan Ruddock . In that fight, Byrd was trailing on the scorecards (83–88, 83–88, & 82–89) but was declared the winner after Vitali retired on his stool between 9th and 10th rounds due to shoulder injury. Byrd's title defence against Wladimir was scheduled to take place at Kölnarena in Cologne and was billed as "Revenge Of The Brother". In a fight that was aired on pay-per-view in

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1260-561: A left hook. Botha got up, but was unsteady on his feet and had both eyes swollen, proceeding the referee to stop the bout. Klitschko had his next title defence scheduled three months later, on 29 June 2002 at Etess Arena in Atlantic City, New Jersey , against former WBO heavyweight champion Ray Mercer . It was the first time in his professional career that Klitschko fought an Olympic Gold medalist . 41-year-old Mercer, having fought Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield throughout his career,

1365-468: A left-right combination. Before the start of the eleventh round, McCline's corner threw in the towel, giving Klitschko his 36th career win by stoppage. At the time of the stoppage, the scorecards were 98–91, 99–90 (twice), all in favour of the champion. CompuBox stats showed that Klitschko landed 181 of his 433 punches thrown (42%), and McCline landed 61 of 307 (20%). The following week after Klitschko's win over McCline, Chris Byrd, whom Klitschko defeated for

1470-476: A replacement, the team hired Jacob "Stitch" Duran . Following his loss to Brewster, Klitschko began his journey back towards the top of the heavyweight division. First, he faced hard-hitting DaVarryl Williamson . The fight took place at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada . Williamson dropped Klitschko forty seconds into the second round, but was outboxed throughout the rest of the bout. An accidental head butt in

1575-600: A rival body, the World Boxing Council (WBC) was formed. In 1983, the International Boxing Federation (IBF) was formed. In 1988, another world sanctioning body, the World Boxing Organization (WBO) was formed. In the 2010s a boxer had to be recognised by these four bodies to be the undisputed world champion; minor bodies like the International Boxing Organization (IBO) and World Boxing Union (WBU) are disregarded. Regional sanctioning bodies such as

1680-429: A standing eight count. On unsteady legs, Klitschko fell to the canvas after the bell and the referee stopped the fight for his safety. When talking about the fight, Emmanuel Steward said: "Wladimir was in incredible shape. I've never seen anything like this in my career. I know what it looks like when a boxer is getting hurt from punches. There was definitely something else that caused problems for Wladimir". Shortly after

1785-556: A straight right hand and again with another left hook, with the fight being stopped after the last knockdown, declaring Klitschko the winner by TKO in the second round. Klitschko earned $ 1 million for the fight. Klitschko's next title defence was scheduled less than five months later on 4 August 2001. The fight took place at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Paradise, Nevada against hometown fighter, Charles Shufford . At

1890-497: A straight right hand) and in round six with a left hook, with referee stopping the bout after the third knockdown. According to punch stats, Klitschko landed 58 of 262 punches (22%) and Shufford connected on 16 of 190 (8%). Klitschko returned to Germany for the next defence of his WBO title against Francois Botha . The fight took place at Hanns-Martin-Schleyer-Halle in Stuttgart , the same venue where Botha had fought Axel Schulz for

1995-523: A weakening reaction and overall physical weakness. Following the results, Klitschko demanded the tests taken by the Medical Center of South Nevada and the Nevada Quest Diagnostics to be passed on to Dr. Robert Wow for further research, but the A sample had already been disposed of, while the B sample, which was supposed to be stored for years, disappeared. Dr Margaret Goodman, the chairwoman of

2100-421: Is declared if at least two judges score the bout in favour of the same boxer. The result is either a (win by) “unanimous decision”, by “majority decision” (if the third judge scores a draw), or by “split decision” (if the third judge scores the bout in favour of the other boxer). Otherwise, the result is a draw: a “unanimous draw” (if all three judges scored the bout a draw), a “majority draw” (if two judges scored

2205-518: Is not permitted, and boxers are generally allowed to take substantial punishment before a fight is halted. Professional boxing has enjoyed a much higher profile than amateur boxing throughout the 20th century and beyond. In 1891, the National Sporting Club (N.S.C), a private club in London, began to promote professional glove fights at its own premises, and created nine of its own rules to augment

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2310-738: Is the younger brother of former WBC , WBO, and Ring magazine heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko , the current Mayor of Kyiv . Klitschko's paternal grandmother was Jewish . The Klitschko brothers lived as children in Czechoslovakia from 1980 to 1985, where their father was stationed with the Soviet occupation forces. They attended a school designated for children of Soviet soldiers in the town of Mimoň in Northern Bohemia . The Klitschko brothers lived in Pripyat , Ukrainian SSR from 1985 to 1986, when

2415-576: The IBF title six years earlier, in the most watched boxing match in German TV history. According to Botha's coach Abel Sanchez , Botha was in the best shape of his career. The South African contender was game in the opening rounds, trying to catch Klitschko with the right hook, but Klitschko was successfully keeping him at the end of his jab. In the eighth round, Klitschko caught him with a counter right hand and then hit Botha with several shots, knocking him down with

2520-619: The Kazakh SSR , KaSSR , or simply Kazakhstan , was one of the transcontinental constituent republics of the Soviet Union (USSR) from 1936 to 1991. Located in northern Central Asia , it was created on 5 December 1936 from the Kazakh ASSR , an autonomous republic of the Russian SFSR . At 2,717,300 square kilometres (1,049,200 sq mi) in area, it was the second-largest republic in

2625-648: The North American Boxing Federation (NABF), the North American Boxing Council (NABC) and the United States Boxing Association (USBA) also awarded championships. The Ring magazine also continued listing the world champion of each weight division, and its rankings continue to be appreciated by fans. Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic The Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as Soviet Kazakhstan ,

2730-487: The Queensberry Rules . These rules specified more accurately, the role of the officials, and produced a system of scoring that enabled the referee to decide the result of a fight. The British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC) was first formed in 1919 with close links to the N.S.C., and was re-formed in 1929 after the N.S.C. closed. In 1909, the first of twenty-two belts were presented by the fifth Earl of Lonsdale to

2835-505: The longest cumulative heavyweight title reign of all time, with 4,382 days as world heavyweight champion, and most fighters beaten for the world heavyweight championship , at 23. He also holds records for the most wins and title defences of the unified championship in professional boxing history. In 2011, both Wladimir and Vitali entered the Guinness World Records book as brothers with most world heavyweight title fight wins (30 at

2940-488: The Bantamweight title in 1892, Canada's George Dixon became the first ever black athlete to win a World Championship in any sport; he was also the first Canadian-born boxing champion. On May 12, 1902, lightweight Joe Gans became the first black American to be boxing champion. Despite the public's enthusiasm, this was an era of far-reaching regulation of the sport, often with the stated goal of outright prohibition. In 1900,

3045-856: The Junior European Championships as a heavyweight . In 1994, he received 2nd place at the Junior World Championships in Istanbul , Turkey, losing to Cuban Michel López Núñez in the finals. In 1995, he won the gold medal at the Military Championships in Ariccia , Italy, defeating Luan Krasniqi , to whom he had lost in the third round of the World Championships in Berlin, Germany earlier that year. In 1996, he captured 2nd place as

3150-418: The Klitschko bout. Klitschko dominated Mercer throughout the entire bout, stopping Mercer in the sixth round. At 2:48 of the first round, Klitschko dropped Mercer with a left hook, becoming only the second man to drop Mercer. Throughout the fight, Klitschko was frequently landing combinations of stiff left jabs, left hooks, and straight right hands. By the fifth round, Mercer's face was swollen and his right eye

3255-479: The Nevada State Athletic Commission's medical advisory board and Nevada's chief ringside physician was in the ring and attending to Klitschko seconds after the referee stopped the fight. Her initial diagnosis of a Grade 3 concussion was confirmed at the hospital after further tests. Goodman was sceptical of the theory that Klitschko had been drugged. As a result of the circumstances that surrounded

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3360-642: The Soviet Union began, the removal of the Korean population from the Russian Far East to Kazakhstan. Over 170,000 people were forcibly relocated to the Kazakh and Uzbek SSRs . Kazakhstani Korean scholar German Kim assumes that one of the reasons for this deportation may have been Stalin's intent to oppress ethnic minorities that could have posed a threat to his socialist system or he may have intended to consolidate

3465-460: The Soviet Union and formed the Commonwealth of Independent States in its place which Kazakhstan joined. The Soviet Union officially ceased to exist as a sovereign state on 26 December 1991 and Kazakhstan became an internationally recognized independent state. On 28 January 1993, the new Constitution of Kazakhstan was officially adopted. According to the 1897 census, the earliest census taken in

3570-601: The Soviet Union passed through the Karaganda Corrective Labor Camp (KarLag) between 1931 and 1959, with an unknown number of deaths. During the 1950s and 1960s, Soviet citizens were urged to settle in the Virgin Lands of the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic. The influx of immigrants , mostly Russians , skewed the ethnic mixture and enabled non-Kazakhs to outnumber natives. As a result,

3675-580: The State of New York enacted the Lewis Law, banned prizefights except for those held in private athletic clubs between members. Thus, when introducing the fighters, the announcer frequently added the phrase "Both members of this club", as George Wesley Bellows titled one of his paintings. The western region of the United States tended to be more tolerant of prizefights in this era, although the private club arrangement

3780-708: The USSR, after the Russian SFSR . Its capital was Alma-Ata (today known as Almaty). During its existence as a Soviet Socialist Republic, it was ruled by the Communist Party of the Kazakh SSR (QKP). On 25 October 1990, the Supreme Soviet of the Kazakh SSR declared its sovereignty on its soil. QKP first secretary Nursultan Nazarbayev was elected president in April of that year – a role he remained in until 2019. The Kazakh SSR

3885-509: The United Kingdom, Wladimir won the WBO world heavyweight title from Byrd by a wide unanimous decision (UD) with scores of 120–106, 119–107, and 118–108, flooring his opponent twice. Klitschko's first defence of the WBO title came on 24 March 2001 against Derrick Jefferson . Jefferson, regarded as a big and athletic brawler and a fan-friendly attraction, was coming into the bout with a record of 23 wins in 26 bouts, with 19 of those wins coming inside

3990-635: The United States became the centre for professional boxing. It was generally accepted that the "world champions" were those listed by the Police Gazette . After 1920, the National Boxing Association (NBA) began to sanction "title fights". Also during that time, The Ring was founded, and it listed champions and awarded championship belts. The NBA was renamed in 1962 and became the World Boxing Association (WBA). The following year,

4095-415: The WBO world title, beat Evander Holyfield to become IBF world champion. After failing to reach agreements with Kirk Johnson , Fres Oquendo , Lou Savarese and Danny Williams , Universum ultimately signed a 4-fight contract with Corrie Sanders , who was ranked No.9 contender by WBO at the time. According to the agreement, Sanders' first fight was going to be for the WBO world heavyweight title. The fight

4200-631: The athleticism of the brothers. Klitschko turned professional with Universum Box-Promotion in Hamburg under the tutelage of Fritz Sdunek , often being featured on fight cards alongside his elder brother Vitali. After building an undefeated record of 24–0 with 21 KOs, he suffered his first loss to 24–13–1 Ross Puritty , in what was Klitschko's first and only professional fight in Ukraine. Puritty forced Klitschko, who had at that time not gone beyond eight rounds, to punch himself out. Klitschko began to be overwhelmed in

4305-534: The border regions with China and Japan by using them as political bargaining chips. Additionally, historian Kim points out that 1.7 million people perished in the Kazakh famine of 1931–33 , while an additional one million people fled from the Republic, causing a labour shortage in that area, which Stalin sought to compensate for by deporting other ethnicities there. Over one million political prisoners from various parts of

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4410-494: The bout a draw, regardless of the result reached by the third judge), or a “split draw” (if each boxer was the winner on one scorecard, and the third judge scored a draw). The 10-point system was first introduced in 1968 by the World Boxing Council (WBC) as a rational way of scoring fights. It was viewed as such because it allowed judges to reward knockdowns and distinguish between close rounds, as well as rounds where one fighter clearly dominated their opponent. Furthermore,

4515-544: The bout, Klitschko was viewed by many as the underdog against the 7-to-5 favourite Peter who had won all of his 24 fights, with 21 of them having ended inside the distance. At the time, Samuel Peter was considered one of the brightest prospects in the heavyweight division. Distinguished boxing coaches Angelo Dundee and Teddy Atlas expected Peter to win. Wladimir's team, including his brother Vitali, were worried about Wladimir, and were against this fight to happen. Wladimir, however, insisted on fighting Peter, claiming that beating

4620-408: The boxer and his team, the card that belonged to Emmanuel Steward 's assistant had already been registered on someone else, and that such card would allow its owner to enter any sporting hall in the building. After the fight, Wladimir's cutman Joe Souza was fired. During the fight, Souza used vaseline on Wladimir's face but also body, which had never been done in any of Klitschko's previous fights. As

4725-513: The campaign was eventually abandoned in the 1960s. In the early days of the Soviet Union, Kazakh culture was both developed and restrained, and later many Kazakh cultural figures were imprisoned, exiled, or killed in Joseph Stalin 's purges. However, after the Stalinist era , Nikita Khrushchev 's efforts to reinvigorate internationalism and furtherly weaken Kazakh culture were controversial in

4830-412: The canvas with the rabbit punch . The referee counted it as the knockdown. Peter immediately went for the attack after Klitschko got up, dropping him again with the rabbit punch. The referee scored it as the second knockdown. Klitschko regained composure and outboxed Peter through sixth to ninth rounds, with Peter frequently trying to hit Klitschko with the rabbit punch whenever escaping from a clinch. Near

4935-480: The closing seconds of the fifth round caused Klitschko bleeding from a cut above his right eye. Due to the cut, the fight was prematurely stopped, with Klitschko being declared the winner by technical decision. Two of the judges scored the fight identically 49–46 in favour of Klitschko, while the third judge had Williamson winning 48–47. After defeating Eliseo Castillo by fourth-round TKO, Klitschko signed to fight Samuel Peter in an IBF and WBO eliminator. Coming into

5040-426: The dawning of a new era in boxing. Three of the four major titlists will be from Eastern Europe. Like the flood waters of Hurricane Katrina that swept away much of New Orleans, a rising tidal wave of Eastern European fighters threatens to sweep away American supremacy in the heavyweight division, putting an end to an era that began with the reign of John L. Sullivan — 124 years ago. Klitschko defeated Byrd by TKO in

5145-513: The development of their bodies. As a reference to their PhDs, Wladimir is announced as "Dr. Steelhammer", a nickname similar to his brother, Vitali, who goes by "Dr. Ironfist". Klitschko started training in amateur boxing with Brovary Olympic Reserve School in the late 1980s. In the early 1990s, Klitschko was coached in Poland's Gwardia Warszawa boxing club, where, according to Jerzy Kulej , "He and his brother used to demolish our boys." In 1993, he won

5250-454: The distance (18 of them inside the first three rounds, 11 of them - in the first round). Jefferson was mostly known for the sixth-round knockout (KO) of Maurice Harris , which was named The Ring Knockout of the Year in 1999. He was 4–2 in the last six fights, losing by technical knockout (TKO) to David Izon , in a fight he was winning on the scorecards but punched himself out, and Oleg Maskaev in round four after breaking an ankle during

5355-564: The early twentieth century, most professional bouts took place in the United States and Britain, and champions were recognised by popular consensus as expressed in the newspapers of the day. Among the great champions of the era were the peerless heavyweight Jim Jeffries and Bob Fitzsimmons , who weighed more than 190 pounds (86 kilograms), but won world titles at middleweight (1892), light heavyweight (1903), and heavyweight (1897). Other famous champions included light heavyweight Philadelphia Jack O'Brien and middleweight Tommy Ryan . After winning

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5460-436: The end of each round, judges must hand in their scores to the referee who then hands them to the clerk who records and totals the final scores. Judges are to award 10 points (less any point deductions) to the victor of the round and a lesser score (less any point deductions) to the loser. The losing contestant's score can vary depending on different factors. The "10-point must" system is the most widely used scoring system since

5565-455: The end of the tenth round Peter staggered Wladimir with a hard right hand, eventually sending Klitschko to the canvas with another right when Wladimir was backing away. In the 11th and 12th rounds, Klitschko was trying to keep Peter at the distance using straight punches. Peter caught him with a left hook in the last round, but was unable to capitalise on it. Instead, Klitschko caught him with a hard counter left hook of his own, staggering Peter for

5670-587: The entire Soviet Union. Kazakh independence has caused many of these newcomers to emigrate. Following the dismissal of Dinmukhamed Konayev , the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Kazakhstan by the last Soviet general secretary , Mikhail Gorbachev , riots broke out for four days between 16 and 19 December 1986 known as Jeltoqsan by student demonstrators in Brezhnev Square in the capital city, Alma-Ata . Approximately 168–200 civilians were killed in

5775-417: The ethnic composition of the population of Kazakhstan were the 1920s and 1930s famines . According to different estimates of the effects of the Kazakh famine of 1930–1933 , up to 40% of Kazakhs (indigenous ethnic group) either died of starvation or fled the territory. Official government census data report the contraction of Kazakh population from 3.6 million in 1926, to 2.3 million in 1939. Upon

5880-407: The event the winner of a bout cannot be determined by a knockout , technical knockout , or disqualification , the final decision rests in the hands of three ringside judges approved by the commission. The three judges are usually seated along the edge of the boxing ring , separated from each other. The judges are forbidden from sharing their scores with each other or consulting with one another. At

5985-577: The examination to the hotel, he fell ill with nausea, followed by physical weakness. On 12 April, he arrived in Las Vegas and donated blood and urine samples for an independent examination, which was supposed to be done by Donald Katlin, who specialised in such cases. The examination showed no signs of anabolic steroids in his blood, but Katlin suggested that Klitschko could have been poisoned with Haloperidol . The drug has no taste or smell and causes mental disorders, which are accompanied by impaired coordination,

6090-430: The fight Klitschko was rushed into hospital. An examination showed Klitschko's blood sugar level almost two times higher than the permissible norm. According to members of Klitschko's team, the doctor told them that Klitschko had been "inches away" from falling into a diabetic coma , and that with blood sugar level that high, Klitschko would've been incapable of handling a single proper training session. After returning from

6195-498: The fight, FBI started an investigation. Judd Bernstein, the lawyer representing Klitschko, suggested that he was a victim of an ongoing fight fixing in Las Vegas (which also included fraudulent medical reports), which was investigated by FBI at the time. Bernstein, along with some other journalists, pointed out that in the last 48 hours before the beginning of the fight, the betting odds in favour of Klitschko rapidly dropped from 11-to-1 to 3,5-to-1. According to journalist Keith Teixeira,

6300-401: The fighter knocked down, resulting in a 10–8 score if there is one knockdown or a 10–7 score if there are two knockdowns. If the referee instructs the judges to deduct a point for a foul, this deduction is applied after the preliminary computation. So, if a fighter wins a round, but is penalised for a foul, the score changes from 10–9 to 9–9. If that same fighter scored a knockdown in the round,

6405-459: The first knockdown in the first round. For the bout, Jefferson weighed in at 260.25 lbs, the heaviest in his professional career and 20 pounds heavier than in his previous bout. The additional weight appeared to be muscle. The fight lasted only two rounds. In the first round, Klitschko knocked Jefferson down with a short left hook. After the first round Jefferson's left eye was swollen. Klitschko knocked him down twice more in round two, once with

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6510-440: The first punch thrown and ultimately stopping him in 43 seconds. Prior to fighting Klitschko, McCline had defeated two more heavyweight contenders, Lance Whitaker and Shannon Briggs , by wide unanimous decisions. Being 6 ft 6 in tall with an 82 in reach, McCline was of similar height and longer reach than Klitschko, while also being 22 lbs heavier. Many opinion polls gave Klitschko a 60–40 advantage over McCline. The fight

6615-410: The first round. Wladimir Klitschko got his chance to fight for the world heavyweight championship on 14 October 2000 against WBO champion Chris Byrd . Byrd, considered one of the most avoided fighters in the heavyweight division at the time, won the title six months earlier on 1 April from Wladimir's brother Vitali (who had a perfect record of 27 fights, 27 wins, 27 KOs coming into the fight), being

6720-509: The first time in the fight. Eventually the bout went the distance, with Klitschko winning the fight by clear unanimous decision (UD). All the judges scored the bout identically 114–111. On 22 April 2006, in Mannheim , Germany, Klitschko faced Chris Byrd for a second time, this time for the IBF heavyweight title. At the time of the bout, Byrd was ranked as the best heavyweight by The Ring , while Klitschko

6825-556: The government in August . Nazarbayev then condemned the failed coup. As a result of those events, the Kazakh SSR was renamed to the Republic of Kazakhstan on 10 December 1991. It declared independence on 16 December (the fifth anniversary of Jeltoqsan ), becoming the last Soviet constituency to secede. Its capital was the site of the Alma-Ata Protocol on 21 December 1991 that dissolved

6930-407: The greatest heavyweight champions of all time. He was known for his exceptional knockout power, using a strong jab , straight right hand and left hook , quick hand speed, formidable physical strength which he employed when clinching opponents, and his athletic footwork and mobility, unusual for boxers of his size. As an amateur , Klitschko represented Ukraine at the 1996 Olympics , winning

7035-403: The hands of individual sanctioning organizations. This meant that fights would be scored differently depending on the rules established by the governing body overseeing the fight. It is from this environment that the 10-point system evolved. The adoption of this system, both nationally and internationally, established the foundation for greater judging consistency in professional boxing. In

7140-439: The late teens into the early twenties. Championship level prizefighters in this period were the premier sports celebrities, TO IF WE, and a title bout generated intense public interest. Long before bars became popular venues in which to watch sporting events on television, enterprising saloon keepers were known to set up ticker machines and announce the progress of an important bout, blow by blow. Local kids often hung about outside

7245-430: The mid-20th century. It is so named because a judge "must" award 10 points to at least one fighter each round (before deductions for fouls). A scoring of 10–9 is commonly seen, with 10 points for the fighter who won the round, and 9 points for the fighter the judge believes lost the round. If a round is judged to be even, it is scored 10–10. For each knockdown in a round, the judge typically deducts an additional point from

7350-1162: The notable achievements of Wladimir Klitschko in amateur boxing: [REDACTED] Junior European Championships (91 kg), Thessaloniki, Greece , September–October 1993: [REDACTED] Copenhagen Cup (91 kg), Copenhagen, Denmark , November 1993: [REDACTED] Junior World Championships (91 kg), Istanbul, Turkey , September 1994: [REDACTED] World Military Championships (91 kg), Tunis, Tunisia , November 1994: [REDACTED] Chemistry Cup (91 kg), Halle, Germany , March 1995: World Championships (91 kg), Berlin , Germany, May 1995: [REDACTED] Multi-Nations Tournament (+91 kg), Liverpool , England, June 1995: [REDACTED] World Military Games (91 kg), Ariccia, Italy , September 1995: [REDACTED] Strandzha Cup (+91 kg), Sofia, Bulgaria , February 1996: [REDACTED] European Championships (+91 kg), Vejle, Denmark , March 1996: [REDACTED] Olympic Games (+91 kg), Atlanta , Georgia, June 1996: "Wladimir hits very hard, harder than (Mike) Tyson. At one point, they ran twelve 800-meter [roughly

7455-419: The other participant is awarded a technical knockout win. For this reason, fighters often employ cutmen , whose job is to treat cuts between rounds so that the boxer is able to continue despite the cut. Other scoring systems have also been used in various locations, including the five-point must system (in which the winning fighter is awarded five points, the loser four or fewer), the one-point system (in which

7560-451: The outcome is determined by decision. In the early days of boxing, the referee decided the outcome by raising the winner's arm at the end of the bout, a practice that is still used for some professional bouts in the United Kingdom. In the early twentieth century, it became the practice for the referee or judge to score bouts by the number of rounds won by each boxer. To improve the reliability of scoring, two ringside judges were added besides

7665-628: The process of returning control and sovereignty of land to the Kazakhs. On 19 February 1925 Filipp Goloshchyokin was appointed First Secretary of the Communist Party in the newly created Kazakh Autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic. From 1925 to 1933 he ran the Kazakh ASSR with virtually no outside interference. He played a prominent part in the construction of the Turkestan-Siberia railway, which

7770-409: The referee, and the winner was decided by majority decision. Since the late twentieth century, it has become common practice for the judges to be three ringside observers who award a score to each boxer for each round, with the referee having the authority to deduct points for certain violations. At the conclusion of the bout, each of the three judges tallies the points awarded to each boxer. A winner

7875-564: The region, Kazakhs constituted 81.7% of the total population (3,392,751 people) within the territory of contemporary Kazakhstan. The Russian population in Kazakhstan was 454,402, or 10.95% of total population; there were 79,573 Ukrainians (1.91%); 55,984 Tatars (1.34%); 55,815 Uyghurs (1.34%); 29,564 Uzbeks (0.7%); 11,911 Moldovans (0.28%); 4,888 Dungans (0.11%); 2,883 Turkmens ; 2,613 Germans ; 2,528 Bashkirs ; 1,651 Jews ; and 1,254 Poles . The most significant factors that shaped

7980-404: The result of an unintentional foul, the fight goes to the scorecards only if a specified number of rounds (usually three, sometimes four) have been completed. Whoever is ahead on the scorecards wins by a technical decision. If the required number of rounds has not been completed, the fight is declared a technical draw or a no contest. If a fight is stopped due to a cut resulting from a legal punch,

8085-420: The saloon doors, hoping for news of the fight. Harpo Marx , then fifteen, recounted vicariously experiencing the 1904 Jeffries-Munroe championship fight in this way. Professional bouts are limited to a maximum of twelve rounds, where each round last 3 minutes for men, 2 minutes for women. Most are fought over four to ten rounds depending upon the experience of the boxers. Through the early twentieth century, it

8190-425: The score would change from 10–8 in his favour to 9–8. While uncommon, if a fighter completely dominates a round but does not score a knockdown, a judge can still score that round 10–8. Judges do not have the ability to disregard an official knockdown; if the referee declares a fighter going down to be a knockdown, the judges must score it as such. If a fight is stopped due to an injury that the referee has ruled to be

8295-469: The services of legendary boxing trainer Emanuel Steward , Klitschko again fought for the vacant WBO title on 10 April 2004, in Las Vegas , against Lamon Brewster. Klitschko dominated Brewster through the course of the first four rounds, sending him to the canvas in the fourth; however, things turned around in the fifth when Klitschko began tiring and Brewster's punches began backing him up. Not defending himself and leaning into ropes for support, Klitschko took

8400-736: The seventh round, becoming a two-time heavyweight world champion in the process. Klitschko dominated the fight using his jab and superior reach, knocking Byrd down twice, once in round five and once in round seven. Byrd beat the count after the second knockdown, but his face was battered and bloody, and the fight was waved off. At the time of the stoppage, judge Roy Francis had the challenger winning every round, while two other judges, Steve Epstein and Robert Hoyle, gave Klitschko all but one round. Professional boxer In contrast with amateur boxing , professional bouts are typically much longer and can last up to twelve rounds, though less significant fights can be as short as four rounds. Protective headgear

8505-455: The sport, as did boxers' managers. The best promoters and managers have been instrumental in bringing boxing to new audiences and provoking media and public interest. The most famous of all three-way partnership (fighter-manager-promoter) was that of Jack Dempsey (heavyweight champion 1919–1926), his manager Jack Kearns , and the promoter Tex Rickard . Together they grossed US$ 8.4 million in only five fights between 1921 and 1927 and ushered in

8610-548: The start of the Second World War , many large factories were relocated to the Kazakh SSR. The Semipalatinsk Nuclear Test Site and Baikonur Cosmodrome were also built here. After the war, the Virgin Lands Campaign was started in 1953. This was led by Nikita Khrushchev , with the goal of developing the vast lands of the republic and helping to boost Soviet agricultural yields. However it did not work as promised,

8715-408: The subsequent adoption of this system, both nationally and internationally, allowed for greater judging consistency, which was something that was sorely needed at the time. There are many factors that inform the judge's decision but the most important of these are: clean punching, effective aggressiveness, ring generalship and defense. Judges use these metrics as a means of discerning which fighter has

8820-505: The tenth round and went down twice but was allowed to continue. At the start of the eleventh round, with Puritty continuing to land hard punches, Klitschko's trainer, Fritz Sdunek, entered the ring and stopped the fight. Three years later, Klitschko's brother Vitali stopped Puritty in the eleventh round himself. On 18 March 2000, Klitschko fought Paea Wolfgramm , whom he fought previously in the 1996 super-heavyweight Olympic finals. In their professional rematch, Klitschko knocked Wolfgramm out in

8925-412: The time, Shufford had a 17–1 record, coming off of wins against Jimmy Thunder and Lamon Brewster . Shufford weighed in at 234 lbs., 17 pounds lighter than in his previous bout. Shufford, having played George Foreman opposite Will Smith in the movie Ali , entered the ring with Smith by his side. Klitschko knocked Shufford down three times, once in round two, once in round three (both times with

9030-626: The time; 40 as of 2020). Klitschko was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame Class of 2021, having been elected in his first year of eligibility. Klitschko was born in Semipalatinsk, Kazakh SSR , Soviet Union (now Semey , Kazakhstan). He is the son of Nadiia Ulianivna Klychko (née Bulyno) and Volodymyr Rodionovych Klychko (1947–2011), a Soviet Air Force major general and a military attaché of USSR in East Germany . He

9135-564: The town was evacuated following the Chernobyl nuclear disaster . The elder Klitschko was also one of the commanders in charge of cleaning up the effects of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in 1986 and was afterward diagnosed with cancer. He also served as a military attache at the embassy of Ukraine in Germany. His mother is Nadiya Ulyanivna. Both Wladimir and Vitali hold PhDs in sports science, with Wladimir's dissertation discussing how much training to give to young athletes between 14 and 19 based on

9240-553: The uprising. The events then spilled over to Shymkent , Pavlodar , Karaganda and Taldykorgan . On 25 March 1990, Kazakhstan held its first elections with Nursultan Nazarbayev , the chairman of the Supreme Soviet elected as its first president . Later that year on 25 October, it then declared sovereignty. The republic participated in a referendum to preserve the union in a different entity with 94.1% voted in favour. It did not happen when hardline communists in Moscow took control of

9345-419: The use of the Kazakh language declined but has started to experience a revival since independence, both as a result of its resurging popularity in law and business and the growing proportion of Kazakhs. The other nationalities included Ukrainians , Germans , Jews , Belarusians , Koreans and others; Germans at the time of independence formed about 8% of the population, the largest concentration of Germans in

9450-469: The winner of a British title fight held at the N.S.C. In 1929, the BBBofC continued to award Lonsdale Belts to any British boxer who won three title fights in the same weight division. The "title fight" has always been the focal point in professional boxing. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, however, there were title fights at each weight. Promoters who could stage profitable title fights became influential in

9555-407: The winning fighter is awarded one or more points, and the losing fighter is awarded zero), and the rounds system which simply awards the round to the winning fighter. In the rounds system, the bout is won by the fighter determined to have won more rounds. This system often used a supplemental points system (generally the 10-point must) in the case of even rounds. In the first part of the 20th century,

9660-690: The world heavyweight championship after defeating Byrd in a rematch to win the International Boxing Federation (IBF) and IBO titles. He won his second WBO title by defeating Sultan Ibragimov in 2008. Following his defeat of Ruslan Chagaev in 2009, Klitschko was awarded the Ring title, and lastly he won the World Boxing Association (WBA) title ( Unified version , later Super version ) from David Haye in 2011. After defeating Alexander Povetkin in October 2013 and until his loss to Tyson Fury in November 2015, Klitschko

9765-399: Was common for fights to have unlimited rounds, ending only when one fighter quit or the fight was stopped by police. In the 1910s and 1920s, a fifteen-round limit gradually became the norm, benefiting high-energy fighters like Jack Dempsey . For decades, boxing matches went on for 15 rounds, but that was all changed on November 13, 1982, following the death of Korean boxer Kim Duk-koo in

9870-445: Was constructed to open up Kazakhstan's mineral wealth. After Joseph Stalin ordered the forced collectivization of agriculture throughout the Soviet Union, Goloshchyokin ordered that Kazakhstan's largely nomadic population was to be forced to settle in collective farms. This caused the deadly Kazakh famine of 1930–1933 in Kazakhstan which killed between 1 and 2 million people. In 1937 the first major deportation of an ethnic group in

9975-407: Was credited with Klitschko's transition from an aggressive puncher to a more defensively-oriented boxer, much as he had done with Lennox Lewis from 1995 to 2003. From 2004 to 2015, Wladimir and his brother Vitali Klitschko (himself a multiple-time world champion) dominated heavyweight boxing, a period typically known as the " Klitschko Era " of the division. In 2006, Wladimir regained a portion of

10080-651: Was cut. In the sixth, Klitschko unleashed a barrage of punches, prompting the referee to stop the bout. Klitschko became the first fighter to defeat Mercer inside the distance. According to CompuBox statistics, Klitschko landed 193 total punches out of 429 thrown (104 power punches out of 167), while Mercer landed 54 shots out of 124 (only 5 power punches landed out of 10 thrown). Klitschko returned to Mandalay Bay Event Center for his sixth defence on 7 December 2002 against Jameel McCline . McCline, having made his professional boxing debut in 1995, became an established contender after defeating Michael Grant , knocking him down with

10185-679: Was elevated to the status of a Union-level republic, Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic . In September 1920, the Ninth Soviet Congress of Turkestan called for the deportation of illegal settler colonists in the Northern parts of the country. The proposed land reform began in 1921 and lasted until 1927,targeting Russian settlers, Ukrainians and Cossacks in the region and from 1920 to 1922, Kazakhstan's Russian population dropped from approximately 2.7 to 2.2 million. A further 15,000 Cossack settler colonists were deported between 1920 and 1921 as part of

10290-476: Was expected to be a tough challenge for Klitschko that would give him and Lennox Lewis , the WBC and The Ring champion, a second common opponent (along with Francois Botha) and a bout comparable to Lewis vs. Tyson . During the build-up to the bout, Mercer referred to Klitschko as "Russian Tommy Morrison ". Since his comeback in 2001, Mercer had won four fights over journeymen, three of them inside two rounds, prior to

10395-428: Was named after the Kazakh people, Turkic -speaking former nomads who sustained a powerful khanate in the region before Russian and later Soviet domination. Established on 26 August 1920, it was initially called Kirghiz ASSR ( Kirghiz Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic ) and was a part of the Russian SFSR . On 15–19 April 1925, it was renamed Kazak ASSR (subsequently Kazakh ASSR ) and on 5 December 1936 it

10500-422: Was ranked eighth. Coming into the fight, Klitschko was viewed as the favourite. Many observers expected Klitschko to dominate Byrd similarly to their first bout. April 22nd, 2006 may be one of the most momentous dates in the history of boxing. On that day, Wladimir Klitschko of Ukraine will most likely easily defeat Chris Byrd of the United States for Byrd's IBF heavyweight title. If that result occurs, it may mark

10605-647: Was recognised as the lineal champion by the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board . For a period of time in late 2015, Klitschko was ranked as the world's best active boxer, pound for pound , by BoxRec . He was also ranked among the 10 best boxers in the world, pound for pound, by The Ring from 17 August 2010 until 23 November 2015, reaching his career peak of No.  2 on 25 November 2014. During Klitschko's reign as world heavyweight champion, his fights would reportedly generate up to 500 million viewers worldwide. Klitschko holds records for

10710-569: Was renamed the Republic of Kazakhstan on 10 December 1991, which declared its independence six days later, as the last republic to secede from the USSR on 16 December 1991. The Soviet Union was officially dissolved on 26 December 1991 by the Soviet of the Republics . The Republic of Kazakhstan, the legal successor to the Kazakh SSR , was admitted to the United Nations on 2 March 1992. The republic

10815-451: Was scheduled to take place on 8 March 2003 in Hanover , Germany. Klitschko later admitted that he came to the fight unmotivated and was already thinking about the vacation he was going to enjoy after the fight. Klitschko suffered an upset TKO loss to Sanders. With thirty seconds left in the opening round, Wladimir threw a jab but Sanders countered with a big left hook, prompting Klitschko to enter

10920-560: Was standard practice here as well, the San Francisco Athletic Club being a prominent example. On December 26, 1908, heavyweight Jack Johnson became the first black heavyweight champion and a highly controversial figure in that racially charged era. Prizefights often had unlimited rounds, and could easily become endurance tests, favouring patient tacticians like Johnson. At lighter weights, ten round fights were common, and lightweight Benny Leonard dominated his division from

11025-403: Was the main event of the card that also featured Floyd Mayweather Jr. defending the WBC lightweight title against Jose Luis Castillo . The fight turned out to be tentative, with Klitschko winning almost every round using his jab and superior footwork. At the end of the tenth round, Klitschko staggered McCline with a barrage of left hooks and overhand rights, and ultimately knocked him down with

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