After Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion on Ukraine, several sanctions and penalties have been imposed on Russia — and Putin himself — by the US, UK, and its other allies.
The impact of this war is obviously immeasurable, and even just on the niche combat sports side of things, several athletes are already beginning to be affected as well.
Ukrainian former heavyweight boxing stars Wladimir and Vitali Klitschko have been directly involved from early on, as the latter is the current mayor of Kyiv. Current boxing world champions Vasiliy Lomachenko and Oleksandr Usyk have also both issued anti-war statements before returning to Ukraine.