Daniel Lapin, Ukraine's rising light-heavyweight star, is set to feature on the undercard of the Oleksandr Usyk vs Daniel Dubois heavyweight title fight at Wembley on Saturday. Lapin, a trusted training partner of Usyk, has overcome significant career disruptions caused by Russian aggression.
In a recent interview, Lapin shared footage of drone attacks in Kyiv that make training impossible after sleepless nights. 'After a night like that you don't want to train,' he said. 'It can go on five nights in a row. You don't want anything, you're just walking around like a zombie.'
Lapin's amateur career was derailed when Russia annexed Crimea in 2014. He was 16 and thriving at amateur level, but the occupation left him isolated. 'Russia destroyed sport in Crimea. It became completely cut off from the rest of the world. I was there for three years under occupation and did almost nothing,' he recalled. 'The occupation broke my amateur career.'
He eventually left Crimea for Kyiv, where he began working with Usyk, whose father had coached Lapin. Lapin's brother is also Usyk's team director. Despite a successful professional debut in 2020, Lapin faced financial struggles and isolation. 'I lived alone, had very little money, had to organise my own life around training sessions,' he said.
The full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022 again disrupted his momentum. After recovering from Covid, he lost 11 kilograms in four months. 'Russia disrupted my career twice,' he said. Nevertheless, Lapin bounced back, winning bouts in Jeddah and now preparing for his biggest opportunity yet at Wembley.
