Anthony Joshua, the renowned boxer, has been involved in a tragic car accident in Nigeria that claimed the lives of two individuals.
The 36-year-old was traveling in a Lexus Jeep when it collided with a parked truck on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway near Makun, local sources report. The crash occurred shortly after 11 a.m. today.
Video footage available online captures the former heavyweight world champion appearing disoriented and shirtless amid the debris and shattered glass of the vehicle.
Subsequent images show Joshua in the front seat of an emergency vehicle, conversing with officials. It’s reported that he suffered minor injuries and was transported to a hospital for treatment. Tragically, two other individuals lost their lives at the scene.
Eddie Hearn, Joshua’s promoter, shared his thoughts with Daily Mail Sport, saying, “I was on a family holiday when I received news of the incident.”
“We are currently trying to reach Anthony. We refrain from speculating on his condition, but thankfully, from what I’ve seen in the images, he seems to be alright,” Hearn added.
‘We are awaiting more information on what has happened and will update in due course.’
CP Lanre Ogunlowo, Commissioner of Ogun State Police, told Daily Mail Sport: ‘I can confirm an accident occurred and Anthony Joshua has been taken to hospital.’
Nigerian authorities confirmed to the BBC that Joshua is ‘fine’.
Footage posted online appears to show former heavyweight world champion Anthony Joshua, 36, topless and looking dazed as he sits in the wrecked Lexus Jeep among shattered glass
He is later seen sitting in the front seat of an emergency vehicle, speaking to officials. It is reported that Joshua sustained minor injuries, and two other people were pronounced dead at the scene
The heavyweight has family roots in Sagamu, a town in Ogun State, Nigeria, and has a tattoo of Africa on his right shoulder.
It is understood that Joshua was seated behind the driver, along with another passenger, when the crash occurred.
Four people were inside the Lexus at the time, while his security followed in a separate vehicle.
An eyewitness told Punch newspaper: ‘It was a two-vehicle convoy: a Lexus SUV and a Pajero SUV.
‘Joshua was seated behind the driver, with another person beside him. There was also a passenger sitting beside the driver, making four occupants in the Lexus that crashed. His security detail was in the vehicle behind them before the crash.
‘Other eyewitnesses and I began the rescue and flagged down oncoming vehicles to assist. A few minutes after the crash, officials of the Federal Road Safety Corps arrived.’
Joshua had posted a story on his Instagram account four hours ago, where he is seen topless in a video playing table tennis with his long-time friend Kevin Ayodele.
He accompanied the clip with the message: ‘@healthy_mindset dishing out table tennis smoke.’
Joshua had posted a story on his Instagramaccount four hours ago, where he is seen topless in a video playing table tennis with his long-time friend Kevin Ayodele
Joshua is seen on his feet after being helped from the wrecked Lexus Jeep
Joshua is pictured with his entourage in Nigeria at the beginning of this year, with Lexus Jeep involved in the crash in the background
Joshua was expected to fight in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in February next year after his sixth-round knockdown of YouTuber Jake Paul in Miami this month.
He had flown back to Britain after his knockout victory before his pre-planned trip to Nigeria where he was expected to stay for a week.
Joshua pocketed a reported £70million from his fight with Paul, which was shown on streaming channel Netflix.
The father-of-one, as expected, emerged triumphant – breaking his opponent’s jaw in two places ahead of the final knock-out, although later said he should have won sooner.
This is a breaking news story. More to follow.
