They met at a book launch party in Los Angeles. And, as the story goes, the actress peered up at the boxer. Hayden Panettiere and Wladimir Klitschko's relationship was marked by safety and struggles.
"You’re huge," the actress told the boxer, the 6-foot-6 champion from Ukraine.
"You’re tiny," Klitschko replied to the New York actress who is about five feet in height.
So began a relationship between the heavyweight and the featherweight, a couple who had a presence at championship fights and galas but struggled outside the limelight.
They got engaged but never married. Had a daughter but separated. Remained in contact as they co-parented and as Panettiere opened up about their struggles and struggles of her own.
It all took a tragic turn Sunday, Aug.
16.
Panettiere, 36, died after suffering cardiac arrest in at her apartment in Greenville, South Carolina.
She was immersed in the world of entertainment, but also became linked to the sports world.
Klitschko reigned as the unified heavyweight champion during much of their relationship. Panettiere attended many of the heavyweight's fights.
In 2014, Panettiere held a Ukrainian flag when Klitschko knocked out Alex Lepai.
On "The Tamron Hall Show," Panettiere later recounted how men in Hollywood approached her inappropriately. And why she gravitated to the boxer.
"How safe Wlad made me feel," she said. "… Chivalry is not dead and there is such an incredible respect for each other that developed and a support system. And I think my being with him might have ended up protecting me because people feared crossing that line."
Battles in and out of the boxing ring
After Klitschko and Panettiere met, he won at least 10 consecutive fights and knocked out seven of his opponents. Panettiere cheered ringside.
Life was more complicated in the outside world.
In May 2014, the couple put their wedding plans on hold during political unrest in Ukraine. Klitshko’s brother, Vitali, was involved in a movement that led to the overthrow of then-Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovychthe.
In December 2014, Panettiere gave birth to the couple's daughter, Kaya Evdokia and Panettiere suffered from postpartum depression.
"I have everything I’ve ever wanted," Panetierre wrote in her memoir, "This is Me: A Reckoning," according to Today.com, "and yet I’m still unhappy."
She later told People magazine she used opiates and alcohol to cope with the depression and that she sought treatment multiple times.
In November 2015, in public for the first time since the birth of her daughter, Panetierre attended Klitschko’s fight against Tyson Fury. She sat ringside and wore a Ukrainian flag over her shoulders in honor of her fiancé.
Klitschko's 11-year reign as heavyweight champion ended that night when Fury won the fight.
The relationship between the heavyweight and featherweight ended more gradually and with turbulence. The romantic relationship appeared to end in 2018.
'One day she'll understand'
When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Klitschko emerged as a visible public figure speaking out for the country’s fight for freedom.
Panettiere showed support with her posts on social media.
According to People magazine, Klitschko received full custody of their daughter in 2018.
In July, during an interview with parenting magazine Mome, Panettiere said, "I love my daughter, and I'm so proud of the young woman she is becoming. I talk to her all the time, and I feel so connected to her.
"One day she'll understand my story, and why I wasn't able to be with her all the time."
Klitschko has offered no public comment about Panettiere's death.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Hayden Panettiere found safety with boxing champ Wladimir Klitschko
