Former heavyweight world champion Anthony Joshua has been involved in a car crash in Nigeria, which killed two people.
The 36-year-old was injured in the accident, which occurred on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway in Makun, Nigeria.
Local media reports that Joshua was in a Lexus Jeep, which crashed into a stationary truck just after 11am on Monday.
Two people were confirmed dead at the scene, while the boxing superstar escaped with minor injuries.
The Olympic gold medallist is seen in footage posted online sitting topless in the vehicle after the crash. Joshua is later filmed sitting in an emergency vehicle and speaking to officials.
It has since been confirmed that Joshua has been taken to hospital but authorities told the BBC that he is fine.
An update from the Federal Road Safety Corps to the BBC has confirmed that five men were involved in the crash. Two have tragically died, Joshua sustained minor injuries and two were unhurt.
The Jeep was suspected to be moving at ‘beyond the legally prescribed speed limit’ when it lost control during an ‘overtaking manoeuvre’ and hit the truck.
Joshua’s long-term promoter Eddie Hearn told the Daily Mail: ‘I am away on a family holiday and awoke to the news of this incident.
‘We are trying to contact Anthony, and in the meantime, we don’t want to speculate on how he is but thankfully he appears OK from what I have seen in the images.
‘We are awaiting more information on what has happened and will update in due course.’
Daily Mail Sport spoke to CP Lanre Ogunlowo, Commissioner of Ogun State Police, who reported: ‘I can confirm an accident occurred and Anthony Joshua has been taken to hospital.
‘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.’
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.’
The iconic boxer posted on his Instagram story earlier on Monday morning, showing a video of him playing table tennis with a friend.
The Watford-born Joshua has family connections to Nigeria, specifically the town of Sagamu in Ogun State, and even spent some of his youth at a boarding school in Ikenne. AJ has made his connection to Africa clear through a tattoo of the continent on his right shoulder.
Joshua was visiting Nigeria shortly after his money-spinning win over Jake Paul in Miami on December 19.
AJ stopped the American in the sixth round of their controversial heavyweight clash which left Paul with a jaw broken in two places.
After the victory, Joshua turned his attention to Tyson Fury and the possibility of a long-awaited scrap in 2026.
‘If Tyson Fury is as serious as he thinks he is, and he wants to put down his Twitter fingers and put on some gloves and come and fight one of the realest fighters out there that will take on any challenge, step into the ring with me next if you’re a real bad boy,’ Joshua said.
‘Don’t do all that talking: “AJ this, AJ that”. Let’s see you in the ring and talk with your fists.’
Hearn said: ‘We want the Tyson Fury fight of course. That’s the fight, the biggest fight.
‘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.’
