LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) — Tributes have been paid after the crash that injured British former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua and killed two close associates on Monday, amid growing concern over Nigeria’s roads following the deadly incident near Lagos.
Joshua, a two-time heavyweight champion and an Olympic gold medalist, was under “observation” while recovering from minor injuries, his promoter said Monday.
Nigeria’s Federal Road Safety Corps said the accident along a major highway connecting Lagos, the country’s economic hub, and Ogun state was a result of “excessive speed and wrongful overtaking,” which had caused the car to collide with a stationary truck by the roadside. Eyewitnesses say the vehicle’s tire had burst at high speed.
Joshua had recently won a bout against Youtuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul on Dec. 19, a fight he used to improve fitness in a bid to contest future top-flight boxing titles.
The former world heavyweight champion, who also holds Nigerian nationality, is in “stable condition” and would remain in hospital for further “observation” according to his promoter, Matchroom Boxing. Joshua’s long-term friends and team members, Sina Ghami and Latif Ayodele, were killed in the crash, the promoter said in a statement posted on X.
Ghami was Joshua’s strength and conditioning coach while Ayodele was a trainer. Just hours before the crash, Joshua and Ayodele posted clips on social media playing table tennis together.
Mustafa Briggs, a friend of Ayodele, described him as pure-hearted and sincere. “He had not a bad intention or a bad bone in his body,” Briggs told U.K. broadcaster Sky News. “He loved life, he enjoyed life,” he said.
Outside a gym owned by Ghami in London, bouquets of flowers have been left at the entrance. Evolve Gyms was temporarily closed on Tuesday to mourn the loss of its “beloved owner,” according to a statement posted on the building.
Concerns over frequent road crashes in Nigeria
The high-profile accident has prompted serious concerns about road safety on Nigerian highways, where accidents are common.
The West African nation recorded 5,421 deaths in 9,570 road accidents in 2024, according to data by the country’s Federal Road Safety Corps. Its data showed 340 more people were killed in road accidents last year compared to 2023.
Experts say a combination of factors including a network of dilapidated roads, lax enforcement of traffic laws, and indiscipline by drivers, produces the grim statistics.
The stationary truck that Joshua’s vehicle hit is a fixture of Nigeria’s thoroughfares, often causing massive gridlocks. Goods and food are transported across Nigeria’s vast geographical reach via these trucks, which experts say tend to be in poor condition and are responsible for many accidents.
“The prevalence of accidents in Nigeria is a serious issue,” Ache Ogu, the CEO of the Road Accident Prevention Network Centre, an Abuja-based nongovernmental organization, told The Associated Press. “Most of the trucks are not in order, and the law enforcement agency needs to step up its efforts.”
Monisola Abosede, a 27-year-old marketer who lives in Lagos and commutes several kilometers every weekday for work, has been involved in two accidents in December alone.
“In Lagos, everyone is in a rush to get somewhere; people are always on the move,” she told The AP, blaming crashes on the city’s heavy traffic combined with the bad state of its road network.
The boxing world reacts
British heavyweight star Tyson Fury has led the tributes from the boxing community in the aftermath of the crash. “This is so sad. May god give them a good bed in heaven,” he posted on Instagram.
Boxer Chris Eubank Jr, who last month fought a high-profile middleweight bout, expressed his support and condolences. “Thank god our heavyweight champ survived that horrible car crash. And pray for the two fallen soldiers Latz & Sina & their families,” Eubank Jr posted on X. “I knew both … they were genuinely good men. Rest in Peace boys.” British boxer Shannon Courtenay, a women’s bantamweight fighter who fought earlier this month in the build-up to the Joshua-Paul fight in Miami, Florida, posted a photo of her with Joshua on Instagram. “As well as Sina and Latz please keep the big man (Joshua) in your prayers,” she wrote, adding. “No man should have to go through and witness what he went through today losing his two best friends.”
Former world champion Wladimir Klitschko, who was stopped in the 11th round by Joshua at Wembley Stadium in 2017, wrote on X: “I’m deeply saddened to hear about AJ and his close-knit group of friends.
“Having had the pleasure of engaging in an unforgettable battle with AJ, I’ve always regarded him as a true class act who commands my utmost respect.
“My heart goes out to him, and I wish him and his loved ones all the best during this difficult time.”
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