Wladimir Klitschko has spoken publicly for the first time since the death of Hayden Panettiere, the American actress with whom he shares an 11-year-old daughter.
“Our family is going through a time of profound shock and grief,” the Ukrainian wrote in an Instagram tribute.
“The announcement of Hayden’s tragic death saddens me deeply. She left this world far too soon.”
Panettiere was pronounced dead at 2:32pm local time on Sunday at a residence in Greenville, South Carolina. A friend had called 911 at 1:51pm local time to report her unresponsive and in cardiac arrest, and paramedics were unable to revive her at the scene.
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An autopsy carried out the following day found no signs of trauma, and the official cause and manner of death remain pending further tests, according to authorities in South Carolina. She was 36, and would have turned 37 the following Friday.
‘The mother of our daughter, Kaya’
Much of Klitschko’s tribute was directed at the couple’s only child, Kaya, who was born in December 2014, a year after the two got engaged.
“Hayden was, although no longer my partner, an important part of my life and the mother of our daughter, Kaya,” he wrote.
“To our daughter Kaya, I will always speak of her mother with respect and make sure she remembers the person she was,” Klitschko told his followers.
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He also spoke about the pressures his former partner had faced away from the screen.
“She built an incredible career through immense talent, while also facing the darker sides of a very demanding industry.”
“Young and talented people like Hayden should not leave this world so soon. Rest easy, Hayden. May you find eternal peace.”
From Heroes to Nashville
Panettiere first met Klitschko in 2009 and became engaged to him in October 2013. The couple later separated but continued to co-parent Kaya, who has spent much of her life in Ukraine with her father.
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She rose to international fame as the cheerleader Claire Bennet in NBC’s superhero drama Heroes, which aired from 2006 to 2010, and later starred as country singer Juliette Barnes in the country-music series Nashville.
Her father, Skip Panettiere, described his daughter as “an incredible light and a force of nature who brought immeasurable love and joy to all who knew her” in a statement to US media.
A career built on records
Klitschko, 50, is one of the most decorated heavyweights the sport has produced. He retired in August 2017 with a professional record of 64 wins and five defeats, 53 of them by knockout, and at various points held the WBA, IBF, WBO, IBO, Ring magazine and lineal world titles.
His grip on the IBF belt lasted more than nine years, the second-longest reign in heavyweight history behind Joe Louis. He suffered a points defeat by Tyson Fury in 2015, followed by an 11th-round stoppage loss to Anthony Joshua at Wembley in April 2017, after which he walked away from the ring.
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