On August 25, one of the greatest boxers of his generation — American Terence Crawford — visited Ukraine. The former undisputed world champion met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and, as a gesture of support for Ukraine, gifted the head of state a puppy of the American pit bull terrier breed. This was reported by Sport RBC.UA, citing the President of Ukraine's Telegram channel, where Zelenskyy personally thanked the athlete for his support of Ukrainians since the start of the full-scale war.
The visit and an unexpected gift
An unexpected moment of the meeting was the American boxer's gift — a puppy of the American pit bull terrier breed named Freya. As noted in the message, the dog's grandfather, a dog named Atos, survived the Russian occupation of Bucha. Zelenskyy, in turn, thanked Crawford for the meeting, the gift, the support, and the respect for the Ukrainian people, emphasizing: "We truly appreciate that such people stand alongside Ukrainians."
The symbolism of the name Freya
The puppy's name was not chosen by chance: Freya was named in honor of the future Ukrainian air defense system FREYJA. Thus, the dog became a living symbol of Ukraine's defense and of the personal support for Ukraine from the American athlete, who throughout the conflict has openly stood on the side of Kyiv.
The career of the undefeated undisputed champion
Terence Crawford is an American boxer from Omaha (Nebraska state). He retired undefeated with a record of 42 wins in 42 fights, 31 of them by knockout. Crawford became the first boxer in the history of the four-belt era to achieve undisputed world champion status in three weight categories — super welterweight, welterweight, and super middleweight. Among his most notable victories are the fights with Ukrainian Viktor Postol, Errol Spence, and Saul "Canelo" Alvarez. It was the victory over Canelo in September 2025 by unanimous decision that became the American's last fight in his career and earned him the undisputed champion title in the super middleweight division. In December 2025, Crawford announced his retirement, explaining the decision by a lack of motivation following the situation with Kazakh boxer Zhanibek Alimkhanuly, who failed to conduct the planned fight with Erislandy Lara due to a positive doping test, as well as an unwillingness to risk his health, citing the fate of Muhammad Ali as an example. "I am for making history," he explained his approach to ending his competitive career.
Contradictory data
In the provided materials, Crawford's age is listed as 38, however this figure does not align with the current chronology of 2026 and with the internal dates of the same text (last fight — September 2025, retirement — December 2025), which indicates a possible error in the original source. Moreover, the key fact about the puppy gift relies on a single primary source — the President of Ukraine's Telegram channel, as recounted by sports media; there is no independent confirmation of the details (the dog's name, the origin of the grandfather Atos) from other channels in the provided materials. Both versions are presented for transparency.
Context: Lomachenko's return
Against the backdrop of Crawford's visit, the attention of Ukrainian boxing is also focused on another event: Vasyl Lomachenko is preparing to return to the ring after a long break and, according to reports, has chosen an exotic country to live and train in. Thus, in Ukrainian boxing a symbolic picture is simultaneously taking shape — a retired American idol personally supports the state, while his fellow ring competitor is preparing for a new chapter.
