SUMMARY
- Anthony Joshua has Nigerian heritage as his family has deep roots in the African country.
- While fans know his ethnicity, many are still confused about which religion Joshua believes in.
Anthony Joshua is a British boxing heavyweight superstar. The 34-year-old fighter represented England in the 2012 Summer Olympics and won the gold medal in the super-heavyweight division after beating Italian fighter Roberto Cammarelle in the final. After a brilliant amateur boxing career, Joshua started his professional journey on October 5, 2013.
His debut fight against Emanuele Leo was an exhibition in pure boxing, and Joshua won the contest via first-round KO. It kicked off an amazing journey that saw him win the WBC International Heavyweight title, Commonwealth Heavyweight title, British heavyweight title, IBF heavyweight title, WBA and IBO Heavyweight title, WBO Heavyweight title, and the The Ring Heavyweight title.
In his illustrious career, Joshua has defeated fighters like Dillian Whyte, Wladimir Klitschko, Alexander Povetkin, Andy Ruiz Jr, and Kubrat Pulev. However, there have been some significant setbacks in AJ’s career as well. His losses against Andy Ruiz Jr and Oleksandr Usyk greatly dented his reputation. Despite that, the Watford-born fighter remains a huge superstar and let’s learn more about his ethnicity, religion, and personal life.
Is Anthony Joshua from Nigeria?
While he is more popularly known as Anthony Joshua, his full name is Anthony Oluwafemi Olaseni Joshua. He was born on October 15, 1989. His parents are Robert Joshua and Yeta Odusanya, who have Nigerian roots. Joshua has grown up in the United Kingdom and he holds a lot of love for England. However, the boxer has a lot of respect for Nigeria as well because of his parents.
AJ revealed more about his Nigerian heritage in a video on his own YouTube channel. In March 2020, he visited Nigeria and it was evident why from the amount of adoration he received in the African country. He thanked the natives for their unbridled support and promised to help the country in many ways. AJ also added that Nigerian culture had a big impact on his upbringing.
He said, “My mum was born in the UK, travelled back to Nigeria and spent a lot of time there, growing up. My dad was born and raised there and travelled to the UK. In my house, it was Nigeria. Outside my house, I was in the UK.” (h/t via Sporting News)
AJ’s African roots go much deeper than just his parents. A 2018 Telegraph report has detailed the historical connections that Joshua’s family has with Nigeria. The pugilist reportedly has ties to the Sagamite aristocracy and they are a part of the West African ethnic group, the Yoruba tribe.
Both his parents grew up in Sagamu and AJ himself was sent to a boarding school here to learn some manners at the age of 11 after his mother was unhappy with his unruly nature. In Nigeria, the Baba Josh Memorial Hall was named after his grandfather, Baba Joshua aka Omo-Oba Daniel Adebambo Joshua. It just goes to show how deep AJ’s connection with Nigeria goes.
Which religion does Anthony Joshua believe in?
Both Anthony Joshua’s parents are Christian and the boxer also adopted the religion from a very early age. But, there were some rumors that AJ was converting to Islam in 2017. In a viral video, a man, who was having a conversation with AJ, claimed that the boxer was close to converting to Islam. After a lot of speculation, Joshua had to clarify his stance on it and added that he was not changing religion.
He added in an iFL TV interview, “I am not a Muslim but I respect Muslims and appreciate Muslims.”
Although he has not converted to Islam, Anthony Joshua has not exactly kept his faith in Christianity either. The 6’6 boxer has chosen to be an atheist. Although he has faith in a higher power, Joshua does not attach himself to any particular religion. As for his professional career, Joshua will go up against former UFC fighter Francis Ngannou on March 8, 2024.