Wladimir Klitschko Retires From Boxing - Sports - Nairaland
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| Wladimir Klitschko Retires From Boxing by Nobody: 5:33pm On Aug 03, 2017 |
Wladimir Klitschko, one of the longest-reigning heavyweight champions in boxing history, announced his retirement on Thursday, ending a 21-year professional career in which he competed in more heavyweight title bouts than anyone. Klitschko's final bout, on April 29 before a crowd of 90,000 at sold-out Wembley Stadium in London, was his 29th heavyweight title fight appearance -- two more than the legendary Joe Louis -- and it was a classic battle against England's Anthony Joshua, who had once sparred with Klitschko but against whom he now was defending his title. It was a rousing, dramatic fight of the year contender in which both fighters got knocked down and showed enormous grit. But Klitschko, 41, went down three times overall and was stopped in the 11th round. It was Klitschko's second consecutive defeat following a massive upset loss to Tyson Fury 17 months earlier that cost him the unified world championship he had held for nearly a decade. Klitschko (64-5, 54 KOs) had the right to an immediate rematch with Joshua and most thought he would accept the fight, so much so that Klitschko's team and Joshua promoter Eddie Hearn of Matchroom Boxing were proceeding as though it was going to happen and making plans for a Nov. 11 rematch in Las Vegas. However, Klitschko still had not made up his mind about whether he wanted to exercise his rematch option and the decision lingered. He had said after the April fight that he wanted time to think about his future, but also said if he did return it would be only to fight Joshua. Now he has made up his mind, and he has decided on retirement. "I deliberately took a few weeks to make my decision, to make sure I had enough distance from the fight at Wembley Stadium," Klitschko said. "As an amateur and a professional boxer, I have achieved everything I dreamed of, and now I want to start my second career after sports. I would have never imagined that I would have such a long and incredibly successful boxing career. I'm very thankful for this. Thanks to everyone who has always supported me especially my family, my team and my many fans." Klitschko, who is from Ukraine, became a star in Germany, where his fights were spectacles in sold-out soccer stadiums across the country. He also spends considerable time in the United States, where he and his longtime fiancée, the actress Hayden Panettiere, are raising a toddler daughter. He walks away from the ring on his own terms as one of the most decorated fighters in history. He won the Olympic super heavyweight gold medal as an amateur, was a two-time world champion as a professional and earned hundreds of millions of dollars. "Especially after this terrific fight at Wembley Stadium it was a very tough decision for Wladimir to make," longtime Klitschko manager Bernd Boente said. "But he has always emphasized that he wanted to retire if he didn't have enough motivation anymore. Therefore this is definitively the right decision. Wladimir accomplished everything in his unique boxing career. He dominated the heavyweight division for over a decade. He fought in sold-out arenas and stadiums worldwide and millions of fans around the world watched his fights on TV. It has been a privilege for me to accompany Wladimir on this unique journey."
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| Re: Wladimir Klitschko Retires From Boxing by MrPdtech: 5:34pm On Aug 03, 2017 |
See what Anthony Joshua have caused.. |
| Re: Wladimir Klitschko Retires From Boxing by Nobody: 5:34pm On Aug 03, 2017 |
congratulations,I guess age has come knocking |
| Re: Wladimir Klitschko Retires From Boxing by BiafraBushBoy(m): 5:46pm On Aug 03, 2017 |
He should have tried na... He almost defeated the bum called Joshua in the last match!! Over to Tyson fury to do the job for me!! |
| Re: Wladimir Klitschko Retires From Boxing by thorpido(m): 6:08pm On Aug 03, 2017 |
He had an illustrious career.It was about time. A re-match with Joshua will still be a defeat though he will get a big paycheck. |
| Re: Wladimir Klitschko Retires From Boxing by zopaks: 6:27pm On Aug 03, 2017 |
BiafraBushBoy:bushy boy indeed... Tyson Fury has also called it quits. Google it |
| Re: Wladimir Klitschko Retires From Boxing by BiafraBushBoy(m): 7:00pm On Aug 03, 2017 |
zopaks: I don't know why we have lots of brai...nless lots who can't think before typing. Is fury not looking for a comeback? Did Klitschko do a comeback before killing of the asshole named Samuel peters? Think before typing, not the other way round!! |
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