Former world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has been discharged from hospital and is remaining in Nigeria as he recovers from injuries sustained in a car crash that killed two of his closest associates, officials and his promoter said.
Joshua, 36, was traveling Monday along the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway when the vehicle carrying him and two members of his team slammed into a stationary truck in Ogun state, southwest Nigeria.
His longtime strength and conditioning coach, Sina Ghami, and personal trainer, Latif “Latz” Ayodele, were killed at the scene, Nigerian police said.
Joshua suffered minor injuries and was treated at Lagoon Hospital in Lagos before being discharged late Wednesday.
Lagos state commissioner for information Gbenga Omotoso said the boxer was deemed “clinically fit to recuperate at home,” though he remains deeply shaken by the loss.
“Anthony was released from hospital last night and will remain in Nigeria over the coming days,” his promoter, Matchroom Boxing, told The Associated Press (AP) on Thursday.
After leaving the hospital, Joshua, accompanied by his mother, visited the morgue to pay his respects as preparations were made to repatriate the bodies of Ghami and Ayodele, according to a joint statement from Lagos and Ogun state governments, which have overseen his treatment since the crash.
Preliminary findings by the Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Agency in Ogun state indicated the SUV was traveling at excessive speed and suffered a tyre burst before colliding with the truck.
A senior police officer told local media that the driver has also been discharged from hospital and is being questioned, with possible reckless driving charges under consideration.
The tragedy struck just hours after Joshua and Ayodele shared lighthearted moments on social media, posting clips of themselves playing table tennis.
Born in the United Kingdom to Nigerian parents, Joshua holds Nigerian nationality and has longstanding ties to the country, where he briefly attended boarding school as a child and regularly visits.
Lagos, the nation’s commercial hub, draws large crowds from across Nigeria and the diaspora during the December holiday period.
Police released images showing the mangled remains of the black SUV involved in the crash.
The two-time heavyweight world champion had most recently fought in December, knocking out YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul in a Netflix-backed bout in Miami.
Joshua, an Olympic gold medalist, has since been linked with a potential blockbuster clash against fellow former world champion Tyson Fury.
His previous bout before the Paul fight ended in a fifth-round knockout loss to Daniel Dubois in September 2024.
