Ukrainian heavyweight boxing champion Oleksandr Usyk was briefly detained at Krakow Airport in Poland on September 17, after an incident that quickly gained attention across social media. Videos surfaced showing Usyk in handcuffs, escorted by police officers. The boxer’s wife, Kateryna Usyk, was quick to calm the situation by addressing the public on social media, assuring fans that there was no criminal activity involved.
"Everything is fine, everything is good! There’s nothing criminal. Oleksandr will explain later. Goodnight to everyone," Kateryna wrote, trying to dispel the rising concerns. Usyk himself later confirmed that the situation was a misunderstanding, thanking the Ukrainian diplomats and expressing his respect for the Polish authorities for handling the incident professionally.
The misunderstanding reportedly occurred when Usyk and his companion were denied boarding for an undisclosed reason. Usyk, failing to comprehend the situation fully, became frustrated and allegedly caused a commotion, which led the authorities to handcuff him as a precautionary measure. However, he was not arrested but was instead escorted to a different area of the airport to allow the flight to proceed without further delay.
Jacek Michalowski, spokesperson for the Carpathian Border Guard, clarified the situation:
"This wasn’t an arrest but an escort to a service area. Usyk and his companion were denied boarding and lost their passenger status. Despite requests to leave the boarding area, they refused, leading to our involvement. The handcuffs were purely preventive and removed in the service area."
Image Credit: Telegram