A rocky relationship. While Hayden Panettiere and Wladimir Klitschko have become amicable coparents through the years, the pair have gone through their ups and downs together.
“I said, ‘You’re huge.’ He said, ‘You’re tiny,’” the Heroes alum recalled of the twosome’s first meeting during a November 2013 appearance on the Ellen DeGeneres Show. “That’s God telling us we’re too far on either side of the spectrum. He needs to make normal people. … He’s got bowlegs, I’ve got knock knees, so they’re going to have straight legs, [and will] be normal height.”
After connecting with the former professional boxer in 2009, Panettiere started dating him on and off through 2011. The pair eventually reconciled and were spotted packing on the PDA in March 2013. Later that month, Us Weekly confirmed that the Ukraine native had proposed.
“Very few people know, and she isn’t wearing her ring publicly yet,” a source previously told Us. “Looks like a summer wedding!”
Amid their engagement, Us broke the news in May 2014 that Panettiere was expecting their first child. Daughter Kaya was born that December. The duo eventually called off their engagement in August 2018.
Since then, the duo have “[gotten] along” as coparents to raise Kaya, who primarily resides with the former athlete in his native Ukraine. Panettiere, for her part, frequently visited her daughter in person and organized FaceTime calls.
“We’re still respectful of each other, and we still have that friendship with each other,” the Nashville alum exclusively opened up to Us in January 2019. “It’s not a situation that you find yourself in all that often, so it’s a new one. But I think we’ve done a really good job.”
Panettiere later moved on with actor Brian Hickerson after her breakup from Klitschko. Hickerson was eventually arrested for domestic violence in May 2019 after an alleged altercation with the actress. A protective order was put in place following a court hearing after Hickerson plead not guilty. One year later, he changed to a no contest plea regarding two of the counts.
“Wlad will be very protective,” a source exclusively told Us after Panettiere’s protective order was granted. “Wlad still has plans to allow Hayden to [see] Kaya. But Brian will never be there. He will not be involved. … [Wladimir] has been truly amazing. He feels this behavior is unbelievable, and [Brian] should be stopped. He is suffering as her whole family and friends are.”
As the pair continued to coparent Kaya, her safety made headlines in February 2022 amid Russia’s invasion of their democratic neighbor.
“She’s safe and not in Ukraine 
,” the Scream 4 actress wrote via Instagram comment at the time after being asked about her daughter’s whereabouts.
Several hours earlier, the New York native vocalized her support for Klitschko’s home country amid the news that he planned to volunteer with the Ukranian army.
“I have personally witnessed the strength of the Ukrainian people who fought so hard for their independence and have continued to passionately defend their country over the years,” Panettiere wrote via her social media upload at the time, alongside a photo with the Olympian. “What [Russian President Vladimir] Putin is doing is an absolute disgrace! This horrific moment in history sends a terrifying message: the message that in this day and age, in year 2022, it’s okay to violate the rights of free people and allow autocrats like Putin to take whatever they please.”
Scroll below to relive the former couple’s relationship journey:
The former flames hit it off after meeting at a party. Bodo Marks/EPA/Shutterstock
After two years of dating, the pair called it quits. Eric Charbonneau/Shutterstock
Panettiere and the Hall of Fame boxer were photographed together several times that February and March. Picture Perfect/Shutterstock
Us reported that the pair had secretly gotten engaged after reconciling. BDG/Shutterstock
They welcomed their first child, Kaya, on December 9. Willi Schneider/Shutterstock
Amid breakup speculation, the duo eventually called off their engagement after spending the better part of nine years together. Picture Perfect/Shutterstock
The Bring It On: All or Nothing star exclusively gushed about the pair’s coparenting dynamic and Kaya’s latest milestones on January 31. “We’re trying to do the book smarts and the street smart. So, you know, trial and error as a parent. … We’re all going to make mistakes,” she told Us. “We go on nice long vacations that result in an email from her school saying, ‘Your kid has been gone too long.’ Like, she’s 4, so let’s not make too big a deal. She speaks multiple languages.” Roger Wong/INF
A source previously told Us that the former heavyweight champion was “very protective” of his ex amid her drama with Hickerson. Tonci Plazibat/Cropix/Sipa/Shutterstock
After the former child star’s split from Hickerson, an insider exclusively revealed that Klitschko was “extremely supportive and a champion” of Panettiere. Dave Allocca/Starpix/Shutterstock
“Happy Father’s Day to this amazing man,” she gushed via Instagram on June 21, sharing a throwback photo of Klitschko and Kaya. “You’re our champ every single day. We love you so much!!! ❤️ ❤️ ❤️ #blessed 🙏🏽 .” Norman Scott/Startraks
“I’m praying for my family and friends there and everyone who’s fighting,” the Tiger Cruise actress wrote via Instagram amid the Russian and Ukrainian conflict. “I wish you had more support and I wish I was there fighting with you! For now, I ask for those of us who can’t be there to stand shoulder to shoulder in solidarity with the people of Ukraine and show your support for #democracy.” Her ex was among the soldiers defending Ukraine, having enlisted in the Reserve Army weeks prior. “It is the love, the love for my city, my home, my family, my neighbors, my daughter that has brought me here today, that I took this initiative and am now taking part in this territorial defense,” Klitschko said at the time via Reuters. He confirmed after the invasion began that he remained in the capital to defend his country. DDP/INSTAR
While discussing her past struggle with opioid and alcohol addiction, Panettiere recalled the decline of her relationship with the boxer. "He didn't want to be around me," Panettiere told People. "I didn't want to be around me. But with the opiates and alcohol I was doing anything to make me feel happy for a moment. Then I'd feel worse than I did before. I was in a cycle of self-destruction." The actress went on to recall sending Kaya to live with her father in Ukraine, saying it was "the hardest thing" she's ever done. "But I wanted to be a good mom to her — and sometimes that means letting them go," Panettiere added. Photofab/Jaworski/Shutterstock
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