Two-time undisputed world heavyweight boxing champion, Anthony Oluwafemi Olaseni Joshua, deserves accolades for the shining example he continues to exhibit as a Nigerian super-patriot, despite the fact that Nigerian boxing administrators once frustrated him off his bid to represent the country at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, China.

Joshua, who has his ancestral roots in Shagamu, Remo, Ogun State, stunned the boxing world when he knocked out Ukrainian terror, Wladimir Klitschko, in Wembley, London, on April 29, 2017. The Union Jack that he raised to greet the mammoth crowd could easily have been Nigeria?s Green-White-Green.

What made the victory extra special was that the Klitschko brothers: Vitali and Wladimir, had shared and dominated the heavyweight platforms for years with no one able to dethrone them. Their mother, Nadiia Ulianivna Klitschko, made sure her sons never went head-to-head in the ring.

His story is that of the rejected stone becoming the head cornerstone. As a teenager, Joshua, a British national, had desired to represent Nigeria at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. He reported to camp but was rejected by officials for reasons not fully explained. He returned to England. In the 2012 London Olympic Games, he won the boxing heavyweight gold medal for the United Kingdom. He turned professional shortly after.

What we find very remarkable is the overflowing love that Anthony Joshua, fondly called ?AJ? by his Nigerian admirers, has for his father?s motherland, Nigeria. Even in England, Joshua is very at home in Nigerian circles. When he won the title in 2017, he presented it to former President Muhammadu Buhari who was on a visit.

Joshua routinely visits Nigeria. In January 2020, he came home to Shagamu and paid his respects to the newly-installed Akarigbo of Remo, Oba Adewale Babatunde Ajayi. He has just departed the country after his latest Easter visit, during which he jogged on the streets of Lagos, interacting with the people. He visited Alhaji Aliko Dangote who celebrated his 68th birthday, and was seen in the home of Peter Okoye of the defunct P-Square musical sensation.

Prominent Nigerians who were ?bitten? by our fractured system have been known to turn their backs on the country. Easily recounted is the case of Kemi Badenoch, who has risen to the top of British political leadership as the leader of the Conservative Party.

Joshua seems to understand that in spite of everything, Nigeria is the homeland of all Black people on earth. His natural connection with his homeland becomes an additional allure. Nigerians and Africans remain the core of AJ?s support base whether he swims or sinks in his professional career.

We appreciate AJ for his love of Nigeria and urge others to emulate him. Home is best, always. And we wish him success in his upcoming pugilistic engagements. (Vanguard Editorial)

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