Vitali Klitschko
Віталій Кличко · also Klitschko, Кличко
Mayor of Kyiv, born in 1971, a former world heavyweight boxing champion who took office in June 2014; English Wikipedia still lists him as incumbent as of October 2026.
Klitschko was born on July 19, 1971, in what was then the Kyrgyz SSR. As a professional boxer he won the WBO heavyweight title and twice the WBC heavyweight title, and was still WBC champion when he retired in December 2013. He has led the UDAR party since 2010, was elected mayor of Kyiv on May 25, 2014, and took office on June 5; English Wikipedia still listed him as incumbent in October 2026.
In January 2026, as repeated Russian strikes hit Kyiv's power and heating infrastructure, he urged residents who had somewhere to go to leave, and later said about 600,000 people had left the city. President Zelensky criticized the city's pace of repairs, and the two sides traded blame publicly.
Kyiv's public transit fares rose sharply in July 2026. Klitschko had signalled the increase in April, citing a "colossal subsidy" from the city budget and rising fuel and electricity costs, and said fares had not been revised since 2018. A petition calling for the increase to be postponed until the end of martial law gathered 6,000 signatures on its first day.
Sources
- Vitali Klitschko (Wikipedia (English), accessed 2026-10-24)
- Around 600,000 people leave Kyiv as Russian strikes cut power and heat (Meduza, accessed 2026-10-24)
- Kyiv’s Biggest Transit Fare Hike in Years Takes Effect (Kyiv Post, accessed 2026-10-24)
In our stories
The mayor of Kyiv, Vitali Klitschko, urged those with somewhere else to go to leave; he later said that, according to mobile-phone data, about 600,000 people had temporarily left Kyiv since January.
Winter, bills and fares: the household accounts →
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Last updated 2026-10-24 · Suggest a correction