The sentence underlines that Vitaly Klitschko is a former boxer who has now given to politics. Is "boxer-turned-politician" a common construction to refer to people who change activities, or is it more the writer's wording ability?
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2It's short, and it gets in the interesting but probably irrelevant fact without taking a whole sentence. Typical journalese. – John Lawler Mar 29 '14 at 18:00
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"Is it a common construction?" Answer, Yes. Well-spotted if you're a non-native speaker! – Fattie Mar 30 '14 at 7:02