Oleksandr Usyk reveals two surprising careers he dreamed of before boxing ahead of mega Tyson Fury fight

Usyk has forged a fine career for himself in professional boxing, winning all 21 of his bouts so far - with 14 of those victories coming via knockout.

But, had he got his way as a youngster, his life would have been extremely different.

In an interview with the Daily Mail, Usyk surprisingly revealed he wanted to be a singer or dancer growing up.

He dreamed of a life in theatre - but now takes to a very different stage.

"My dream when I was younger was to be a singer or dancer," said the Ukrainian.

"I thought I could be in the theatre. I would play music really loud and take my mother's perfume bottle and sing away.

"My family didn't have any money. My father and my mumma would work to get money for food and T-shirts.

"My father would say to me, 'Son, I know you want to do this but we don't have the opportunity'. I would say, 'OK, no problem, it doesn't matter'.

"I would go to work, I would try to get more money, I would teach to help pay for things.

"Dancing, music, boxing. Every part of my life has given me power."

Usyk, he says, turned to boxing because it was affordable. He turned to the sport after being encouraged by friends who enjoyed sparring.

Yet when he first took part in the sport, the boxing star immediately found out how difficult it could be.

"I took a lot of punishment, I took a lot of punches to the face. My nose had blown.

"I was boxing, then I wanted to start kicking. The coach was like, 'No you can't kick, this is not kickboxing, it's just boxing'.

"I stopped training, I said to the coach, 'When is the next training session?' He said, 'The day after tomorrow, but I don't think you should go'.

"I asked why and when I got home I think I realised why (pointing to his face).

"I went home and my nose was a little bit big and my face bruised.

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"My mumma was like, 'Oh my God, what is going on, what happened to your nose?'

"I'm like mumma, don't touch me please. It's all good, I AM A MAN! My father was like, 'Hey Nadia, don't touch, it's all good'.

"So yeah, that was my start in boxing. But I went the next day and then I went every day after that."

Usyk is now set to take part in the biggest fight of his life.

But there are far bigger things going on in the world than a showdown between himself and Usyk, with the war in Ukraine continuing to rumble on.

Usyk says his daughter was left 'terrified' after a rocket exploded next to her classroom in school, while he also revealed he messages his loved ones 'all the time' to make sure they're safe.

"My family are in Kyiv," he said. "There are rocket attacks and missiles every day.

"You can't see the extent of the damage on European TV. People are dying every day.

"I personally feel it because my daughter went to school and a rocket exploded next to her classroom. She could feel the walls shaking. She was terrified.

"I message my friends and family all the time saying, 'I don't need a response but just show me you are alive'.

"I ask them to send me a plus and if they do I feel happy that they are not dead."

And Usyk is determined to win on Saturday for the Ukrainian people, adding: "We are fighting for our lives. Either we are going to be free or we will be destroyed.

"I believe in Ukraine even more than myself and I do believe in myself that I will beat Tyson Fury.

"For me, the fight with Fury is important. Winning four belts is important. Being undisputed champion is important.

"But more importantly it's about giving that feeling of joy to my Ukrainian people. My Ukrainian friends, my Ukrainian soldiers. It's an opportunity to share some positivity and I want to do that."