Russia calls world boxing champion Usyk “Nazi supporter” and seizes his Crimean property

2025-12-17 16:04 4 min

The Russian-installed occupation administration has decided on the so-called “nationalization” of assets linked to Ukrainian individuals and legal entities in Crimea, UNIAN reports. Among them is property belonging to the undisputed world heavyweight boxing champion Oleksandr Usyk, born in Simferopol.

This has been announced by Vladimir Konstantinov, speaker of the so-called “State Council” in the peninsula. According to him, the list of “nationalized property” includes 84 assets belonging to individuals who allegedly “cooperated with Ukraine and directed their income to support Ukrainian structures.”

Usyk was labeled a “supporter of Nazi ideology” by the occupiers

Konstantinov has publicly accused Oleksandr Usyk of adherence to a “Nazi ideology,” citing as justification the boxer’s condemnation of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine and his support for the Armed Forces of Ukraine, including through charitable fundraising.

Oleksandr Usyk is the undisputed world heavyweight champion according to the WBC, WBA, WBO, IBF, and The Ring.

In May 2024, he defeated Tyson Fury to claim the undisputed title, and in December of the same year, he confirmed his status in a rematch.

Usyk is an honorary citizen of the city of Simferopol, which has been under Russian occupation since 2014.

Who else was subjected to “nationalization”

In addition to Usyk, the Crimean occupation authorities announced the seizure of assets belonging to other Ukrainian citizens. In particular, this concerns Ihor Franchuk, a Ukrainian politician who has lived in Ukraine since 2018 and serves as an adviser to a deputy prime minister. In Crimea, he owns the companies LLC “Lilaste” and LLC “Crimean School ‘Teskаo’”.

The list also includes:

LLC “Tavrida-Plaza”
PJSC “O. F. Zasyadko Mine” (which owned a sanatorium in Crimea)
LLC “Zhovtneve Elevator”

Moreover, the occupiers stated their intention to appropriate the property of Ukrainian citizens who are directly defending Ukraine in the war launched by Russia. In relation to one such individual, a “treason case” has already been initiated in Crimea.

In essence, this represents another wave of repression, illegal confiscations, and economic looting in the temporarily occupied territory.