By Shaun Murphy-
Anthony Joshua has returned to the gym as he continues his recovery from a car crash which killed two close friends.
The former world heavyweight champion was injured in the crash in Nigeria on December 29 which killed Sina Ghami and Latif ‘Latz’ Ayodele. Ghani was his strength and conditioning coach , whilst Ayodele was his personal trainer.
AD: Capeesh Restaurant
The two health and fit men were very close to the former world boxing champion, and had been with him from the beginning of his career. They had been in Nigeria for just six hours, and were on their way to Joshua’s family home for new year celebrations when the fatal accident occurred.
The londoner attended the funeral of his two friends, and has vowed to look after their respective families.
Mobalaji, Adeniyi, Kayode, has been charged with four counts of dangerous driving, and will be in court on January 20 to answer for trial regarding those offences. The driver who had been hired to drive Joshua for the past three years revealed that he had asked Joshua to swap seats with one of his friends in order to make it easier for him to view the rear mirror when driving.
AD: Oysterian Sea Food Restaurant And Bar
Joshua today posted a video on Snapchat showing him working out, hitting pads, exercising and riding a stationary bike.
Promoter Eddie Hearn told Sky Sports: “He will need his time physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually before he makes a decision on his future. I do think he will want to return to boxing, but that will be his decision when the time is right.
“It is certainly not a conversation I’ll be having with him any time soon. The only conversation is ‘are you OK?’ and sometimes we find people will give that facade of being OK, but what happened to him is not normal and heartbreaking for all involved.
“When the time is right, I believe he will make his decision and you will hear it from him. That is the only voice you should listen to in that respect and we’ll give him his time to make that decision and heal.”
AD: Heritage And Restaurant Lounge Bar
Before the crash, there had been talks of a fight between Joshua and his nemesis, Tyson Fury, but it remains uncertain whether that will still happen. Speculation has been rife amongst ordinary members of the public as to whether Joshua will be able to ever fight again due to the psychological effect of being involved in such an accident in which he lost his close friends.
If Joshua’s post is anything to go by, it appears he may be determined to fight through the mental scars and press ahead with his boxing career, once he has had time to heal.
Joshua won olympic gold in the London 2012 olympics and is believed to be worth an estimated £200m.