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Former world heavyweight boxing champion Wladimir Klitschko will sell non-fungible tokens in a collaboration aimed at raising money for his home country of Ukraine as it defends itself from Russia's invasion.
Klitschko teamed up with New York-based artist WhIsBe for the collection that will be released Wednesday on NFT marketplace OpenSea. WhIsBe is re-fashioning his "Vandal Gummy" bears artwork that features colorful gummy bears in police lineup photos. The new round of art with four NFT editions will be centered on gummy bears in the colors of the Ukrainian flag – blue and yellow.
The "Vandalz for Ukraine: WhIsBe x Wladimir Klitschko" collection will be available at the $100, $1,000, and $10,00 price points and a 1-of-1 NFT will be sold for $1 million.
Ukraine and its supporters, including NGOs and DAOs, have raised millions of dollars through cryptocurrency donations and other fundraising efforts. Russia launched a full-scale attack against Ukraine nearly two weeks ago, with Russia shelling cities in the former Soviet republic.
45-year-old Klitschko, who won the World Boxing Organization's heavyweight title twice, reportedly has enlisted in Ukraine's reserve army Klitschko's brother, Vitali, a former boxing champion who is now mayor of Ukraine's capital Kyiv, has also vowed to defend Ukraine from Russian aggression.
Proceeds from the "Vandalz for Ukraine" NFT sales will go to Red Cross Ukraine and UNICEF and participating partners will waive their fees. The sale will run for three weeks starting Wednesday.
