KIEV, Jan. 19 ??“ Vitaliy Klichko, Ukraine??™s world heavyweight champion, announced on Thursday he will run for the post of the Kiev Mayor in March competing with his former patron and incumbent mayor Oleksandr Omelchenko.

The decision to run for the mayor has been widely anticipated after Klichko had ended his professional boxing carrier in November 2005. Klichko also leads a bloc of liberal and youth parties for the general election.