Anthony Joshua seen playing table tennis in Instagram post just hours before he was injured in fatal car crash that killed two other passengers | Retrui News | Retrui
Anthony Joshua seen playing table tennis in Instagram post just hours before he was injured in fatal car crash that killed two other passengers
SOURCE:Daily Mail
The British boxing star, 36, sustained minor injuries in the incident and is understood to be receiving treatment in hospital.
Anthony Joshua was seen playing table tennis just hours before he was injured in a horror car crash that killed two other passengers in Nigeria.
The British boxing star, 36, was 'rescued alive and sustained minor injuries' and is understood to be receiving treatment in hospital.
The crash, along a busy stretch of the Lagos-Ibadan expressway in Makun, happened at around 11am local time (10am GMT) on Monday.
Joshua was one of five men involved in the crash when the Lexus Jeep he was travelling in the back of ploughed into a stationary truck near a petrol station. His security entourage was following in a separate car.
Authorities said the black Lexus is believed to have been travelling 'beyond the legally prescribed speed limit' and lost control while making 'an overtaking manoeuvre'.
The former two-time heavyweight champion, whose parents are both Nigerian, shared a story on Instagram at 9.30am local time (8.30am GMT), where he appeared happy as he played table tennis alongside his long-time friend, Kevin Ayodele.
In a short clip posted to his 18 million followers, a shirtless Joshua is seen smiling as he rallies with the personal trainer. He accompanied the clip with the message: '@healthy_mindset dishing out table tennis smoke.'
It is unclear when the footage was taken but it was posted just an hour and a half before the accident. Joshua's strength and conditioning coach, Sina Ghami, had also shared an Instagram story of what is believed to be the back of a Mitsubishi which was part of the boxer's convoy.
Footage from the scene of the crash shows Joshua looking dazed and wincing in pain.
Joshua had posted a clip of him playing table tennis with his long-time friend Kevin Ayodele just hours before the crash
Footage posted online appears to show former heavyweight world champion Anthony Joshua, 36, shirtless and looking dazed as he sits in the wrecked Lexus among shattered glass
A picture of a Mitsubishi, believed to be part of Joshua's convoy, which was posted on Instagram by his strength and conditioning coach
He is later seen in the front seat of an emergency vehicle, speaking to officials. It is reported that Joshua sustained minor injuries and was taken to hospital. Two other people were pronounced dead at the scene and two more escaped unhurt.
Joshua's promoter Eddie Hearn told Daily Mail Sport: 'We are trying to contact Anthony and in the meantime we don't want to speculate on how he is but thankfully he appears okay from what I have seen in the images.
'We are awaiting more information on what has happened and will update in due course.'
CP Lanre Ogunlowo, Commissioner of Ogun State Police, said: 'I can confirm an accident occurred and Anthony Joshua has been taken to hospital.'
He added: 'A vehicle rammed into a stationary vehicle. Unfortunately, there were two fatalities. Anthony Joshua was treated by first-responders at the scene and then taken to hospital.'
A friend of Joshua's said that 'he's okay but badly shaken up'.
'Nobody knows quite what damage has been done, but was able to escape the wreckage,' they added.
'Others weren't quite so lucky so it's been a traumatic ordeal which he's trying to process.'
Oluseyi Babaseyi, police spokesperson for Ogun state, said: 'The vehicle conveying Anthony Joshua, a Lexus SUV, was involved in the accident under circumstances that are currently being investigated. He was seated in the rear of the vehicle, sustained minor injuries and (is) receiving medical attention.'
The heavyweight has family roots in Sagamu, a town in Ogun State, Nigeria, and has a tattoo of Africa on his right shoulder.
Anthony Joshua pictured after a car crash in Nigeria on Monday which killed two people
Joshua was later seen sitting in the front seat of an emergency vehicle, speaking to officials. It is reported Joshua sustained minor injuries and two others were pronounced dead at the scene
The truck that the Lexus Jeep crashed into is pictured here
Joshua is seen on his feet after being helped from the wrecked Lexus Jeep
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 is pictured with his entourage in Nigeria at the beginning of this year, with the 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 viewed by more than 30 million people on 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.
Joshua gave Paul credit while speaking to reporters after his victory, admitting it took him 'a bit longer than expected' to stop the American.
'It wasn't the best performance,' he said.
'The end goal was to get Jake Paul, pin him down and hurt him. That has been the request and that was on my mind. Took a bit longer than expected but the right hand found the destination.
'Jake Paul has done really well tonight, I want to give him his props. He got up, time and time again. It was difficult in there for him, but he kept on trying to find a way through.
'You have to give Jake his respect for trying, trying and trying. But he came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a 15-month lay-off.'
Joshua and his promoter Hearn also looked ahead to the future, urging Tyson Fury to sign on the dotted line and set-up arguably the biggest fight in British boxing history.
Fury is expected to come out of retirement next year after stepping away from the sport when he suffered a second consecutive loss to Oleksandr Usyk in May 2024.
Hearn said: 'We want the Tyson Fury fight of course. That's the fight, the biggest fight.
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
'We can do that, by the way, straight away. No interim fights. If Tyson's ready and AJ is ready, we don't have to fight in February or March. I think he's saying eight weeks, 24 hours to sign a contract.'
Before Joshua added: 'The best promoter in the world has been speaking with Turki [Al-Sheikh], His Excellency, Riyadh Season, and now he's going to relay those messages and speak to my training team.
'I'm a strong guy. I want to push on - but the coaches, it's really up to them, they're the ones that guide me. Fighters will always fight, coaches are there to guide us.
'They know what I've been through over the x amount of weeks I've been with them so it's up to them to make a decision. They're going to speak with Eddie, and then hopefully in a week or so, I'll have some news.'