The reigning WBC, WBO and WBA title holder was led away in handcuffs by border security guards, sparking a furious response from the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Initial reports suggested that the 37-year-old boxer was deemed “unfit to travel” and was detained while explaining that he was “exhausted” following an arduous journey from Ukraine.
Released soon after, Usyk took to social media to reassure his fans: “Friends, everything is fine. There was a misunderstanding that was quickly resolved. Thank you to everyone who was concerned.”
He added: “Respect to the Polish law enforcement officers who perform their duties regardless of height, weight, arm span, and titles.”
Now his promoter, Aleksander Krasiuk, has spoken out to shed new light on the incident.
“Oleksandr and his friend (also Oleksandr) were to fly on Ryanair flight FR2777 from Kraków to Thessaloniki, but after an 11-hour car journey from Kyiv to Kraków were a bit tired,” said Krasiuk on Instagram.
“Usyk had a priority boarding pass, and his friend was in the general queue,” he continued. “While waiting to board, Oleskandr’s friend fell asleep on the seats in the waiting room.”
According to Krasiuk, Usyk waited for his friend after going through passport control only to find that he had been prevented from boarding.
“The airline staff somehow strangely described the second Oleksandr as being in a state of ‘deep alcohol intoxication’,” said Krasiuk.
With Uysk refusing to leave his friend behind, airline staff called police officers who then handcuffed the champion after he told them he would not leave the area without speaking to Ukrainian diplomatic staff.
The incident came on the eighth anniversary of Usyk’s victory over the Polish fighter Krzysztof Głowacki.
“It can be said with full certainty that the Poles celebrated the anniversary of Usyk's victory over Głowacki in Gdańsk in 2016 in a specific way,” wrote Krasiuk.
Krasiuk added that he was waiting for an official apology and compensation from Ryanair and Polish law enforcement.
A spokesman for Ryanair told Polish news outlet Onet: “The passenger traveling with Mr Usyk was correctly refused boarding due to his disruptive behavior. The passenger's traveling companion, Mr Usyk, was not refused boarding, but he chose not to.”
Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram: “I spoke to Oleksandr Usyk on the phone when he was detained. I was outraged by this attitude towards our citizen and champion. I instructed the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Andriy Sybiha, and the Minister of Internal Affairs, Ihor Klymenko, to immediately investigate all the details of the incident at the Krakow airport.”
Usyk is scheduled to soon begin training for his upcoming December rematch against Tyson Fury in Saudi Arabia.
