Vitali Klitschko is invincible. In his world title bout against Kevin Johnson on Dec. 12, he bossed the ring, bullying his opponent who barely fired a punch. The American’s only way of annoying Klitschko was by ducking and diving to prevent the champion from landing enough telling hits to finish him off. The match ended up a dull affair.
The fight brings us back to the cursed question for Klitschko: What is to be done? He can fight challengers such as Johnson as often as he wants, but it won’t cement any kind of legacy. Surely the only fight he can take now is with David Haye, the cocky British world champion who defeated Russian giant Nikolai Valuev in November. He has in abundance what Johnson sorely lacked – quickness, punching power and ambition to knock Klitschko out. The look of pained confusion on Valuev’s face when Haye rocked him with a big left in the final round showed that Klitschko’s chin would be tested. But whether Haye could withstand 12 rounds of sustained power from the bigger Klitschko, a much more clinical puncher than Valuev, is an intriguing question.
Another option would be to fight Valuev. That would certainly be an interesting match-up, as Klitschko wouldn’t find it as easy as he usually does to dominate the ring against the giant Russian. It’s unlikely to happen, however, as Valuev’s promoter is the colorful and controversial Don King, with whom Klitschko has a long-running dispute.
More likely to happen is Euro 2012 in Ukraine, although the Union of European Football Associations says it’s going to be keeping a close eye on progress and could still change its mind. To give credit where it’s due – the two oligarchs Rinat Akhmetov and Oleksandr Yaroslavsky have been crucial to the Euro 2012 bid. The stadiums in Donetsk and Kharkiv may not have been originally planned for Euro 2012. They may be prestige projects to boost the billionaires’ popularity; but they are also the most significant signs that Ukraine is ready to host the tournament.
After the UEFA announcement on Dec. 11, there were again all manner of statements about the benefits the tournament will bring for tourism, infrastructure and investment. I hate to be the party pooper, but I fail to see a city such as Donetsk becoming a tourist hub. This talk of floods of foreign tourists and improved infrastructure is well-meaning, but a soccer tournament, a top-class stadium, a new airport and some improved roads are not going to turn Donetsk into Baden-Baden, Germany, where a number of England fans returned after enjoying their time at the World Cup in 2006. What can one do there? I was recently in a city center hotel which was advertising a trip to a working mine as the main local tourist attraction. It’s not clear who is going to use the new terminal that is being built, given that the current airport serves only a handful of flights a day. Nor are these improvements necessarily going to bring investors flooding in. As local kingpin Akhmetov pointed out earlier this month: “We need to assure an investor that he can come to Ukraine with his money and his assets will be safe. Moreover, that his funds will be paid back.”
Don’t get me wrong, I would love to see Ukraine pull a rabbit out of the hat and stage a wonderful tournament. I would love it to stimulate investment and tourism. I would also love to see Andriy Shevchenko still playing and Ukraine’s talented young players growing into a team that can challenge the best in Europe and make it all the way to the final in Kyiv. But preparations so far have been more about avoiding a knockout blow than putting on a classy show, a little like American boxer Johnson last weekend.
Kyiv Post staff writer James Marson can be reached at marson@kyivpost.com.
