Wladimir Klitschko has issued a new public message on what would have been Hayden Panettiere’s 37th birthday.
The retired heavyweight boxing champion, 49, took to social media on Thursday, August 21, five days after the Heroes and Nashville star was found dead at age 36 in Greenville, South Carolina. Klitschko and Panettiere, who dated on-and-off from 2009 to 2018, share an 11-year-old daughter, Kaya Evdokia Klitschko.
“Today is Hayden’s birthday. Instead of celebrating the way we had planned, today we celebrate her life, her spirit, and the love she brought into this world,” his message began. “I want to thank all of Hayden’s fans, friends, and everyone who has reached out for the incredible outpouring of love and support. At a time filled with so much sadness, your kindness has reminded me that there is still so much good in humanity.”
Klitschko continued: “If you’re reading this, I ask just one thing: even if only for a moment, think about LOVE. Reach out to a friend. Forgive someone. Be kind. Love is a superpower. Use it.”
The Ukrainian athlete concluded his tribute to his former fiancée: “Happy Birthday, Hayden. You are loved, you are missed, and you will never be forgotten.”
This marks Klitschko’s second public statement since Panettiere’s sudden death. In his initial tribute posted August 16, he described his family as going through “a time of profound shock and grief” and called Panettiere “an important part of my life” despite their romantic relationship having ended years earlier. “She left this world far too soon,” he wrote at the time.
Panettiere had relinquished full custody of Kaya to Klitschko in 2018, a decision she later described as “incredibly difficult” but necessary for her daughter’s wellbeing. In her May 2026 memoir This Is Me: A Reckoning, the actress wrote that her bond with Kaya remained “incredibly strong” despite the distance, though she grieved “that I’m not the mother I thought I’d be.” She praised Klitschko as “one of the most courageous people I’ve ever met and a true hero in so many ways,” adding, “Wlad, you are a wonderful human being and an amazing father to Kaya.”
In the viral moment that preceded this outpouring of tributes, Panettiere was found unresponsive at a residence in Greenville on Sunday afternoon, August 16, after emergency personnel responded to a call about an “unresponsive female.” The Greenville County Coroner’s Office stated she was in cardiac arrest and could not be resuscitated despite advanced life support measures. An autopsy found no signs of trauma, and the coroner said the cause and manner of death remain pending further investigation. Police have said there are “no signs of foul play” or “suspicious circumstances.” Panettiere had reportedly traveled from Los Angeles to South Carolina with her on-again, off-again boyfriend Brian Hickerson the day before her death.
Panettiere’s father, Alan “Skip” Panettiere, confirmed her passing in a statement to ABC News, calling his daughter “an incredible light and a force of nature who brought immeasurable love and joy to all who knew her — and to the millions who watched her onscreen.” The actress had been open about her struggles with alcohol and opioid addiction, postpartum depression following Kaya’s birth, and the devastating 2023 death of her younger brother Jansen Panettiere at age 28.
Her Nashville co-star Connie Britton paid tribute to her “massive heart and talent,” while Heroes co-star Masi Oka remembered her “beautiful spirit, immense talent and the joyful energy she brought to everything.” CBS Mornings host Gayle King, who interviewed Panettiere in May 2026, said she was “so, so sad” and recalled that while Panettiere told her off-camera she felt she was in a good place, King sensed she was “clearly still struggling.”
The Greenville County Coroner’s Office investigation into Panettiere’s cause of death remains active and ongoing.