It has been 20 years since Tom Loeffler joined forces with Vitali and Wladimir Klitschko to form K2 Promotions, the banner under which both brothers won versions of the heavyweight championship. It has been 11 years since Vitali walked away from the sport, and six since Wladimir retired, but now the two Ukrainians are engaged with an opponent far tougher and more dangerous than any they faced in the boxing ring. Although this is one fight of theirs in which Loeffler can be no more than a concerned bystander, he says it is a battle he thinks about constantly.
“Whatever happens in boxing, whatever I’m doing, in the back of my mind, I’m thinking about everything they’re going through,” he told ProBoxTV News. “They had so many great fights in the ring, and now they’re in the fight of their lives. Literally, in the fight of their lives. They’re in Kiev, which is pretty secure; they have the bunkers and everything like that, but you never know what’s going to happen. You never know what else Putin is going to do.”
While Loeffler doesn’t know when next he’ll be able to see them, he says that they remain in regular contact.
“If I hear something on the news, I’ll text Wladimir – Wladimir mostly, because Vitali is so tied up as mayor of Kiev. Wladimir could live anywhere he wants to; he’s not obligated to be there in Kiev, or in Ukraine, but he’s 100% supporting his brother and his country – and they need all the motivation they can get to fight this giant Russia.
“You know, they have a hard resolve. Wladimir says, “we’re going to win this, to defend our country,” and as long as they get the right weapons, they have the willpower there. That’s the thing they have, the morale of defending their country and their lives and their families, and everything it stands for. But I don’t think anyone expected – at least, I didn’t expect, when I first saw the invasion coming, and the long train of Russian tanks waiting to come in – that they would be able to keep fighting as long as they have.”
