Being a 2012 Olympic gold medallist, Anthony Joshua was considered a serious threat to the division right from the get-go. However, he captured the world’s attention with his first ‘real’ test against Dillian Whyte in 2015. He ended Whyte with a seventh-round knockout and put other top contenders on notice.

What he did after the Dillian Whyte was what really proved that he wasn’t like other contenders- he willingly took on the toughest fights in the division. From 2016 to 2018, he fought Charles Martin, Dominic Breazeale, Eric Molina, Wladimir Klitschko, Carlos Takam, Joseph Parker, and Alexander Povetkin.

With a win over the former reigning champion Wladimir Klitschko, Joshua became the WBC, IBF, and IBO champion in 2017.

Two years later, he faced his first and only career loss against Andy Ruiz. This made him go back to the drawing board and make necessary corrections to his game. In the subsequent rematch six months after the loss, Joshua redeemed his loss with a win over Ruiz.

Anthony Joshua has already proven himself as one of the greatest heavyweights of all time. He is now considered the ‘people’s champ’ because of his dedication to the sport and champion mentality.

Here’s a little bit about the two-time unified heavyweight champion’s life and background-

What is Anthony Joshua’s real name?

He is commonly known as either Anthony Joshua or ‘AJ’ in the boxing world; however, the heavyweight champion was born with a name that ties him to his Nigerian family heritage.

The IBF, IBO, WBA, WBO heavyweight champion was born ‘Anthony Oluwafemi Olaseni Joshua’ on October 15, 1989, in Watford, Hertfordshire, UK.

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In 2015, Dillian Whyte took shots at him by saying his real name is ‘Femi’ and not Anthony Joshua.

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However, he clarified in a later sit-down interview that his real name is Anthony Oluwafemi Olaseni Joshua. He added that his Nigerian descent parents and family call him ‘Femi’.

Anthony Joshua’s nationality and background

Anthony Joshua was born in Watford, Hertfordshire, UK. However, he spent a part of his childhood in his parent’s home country, Nigeria.

His mother, Yeta Odusanya, is Nigerian, and his father, Robert Joshua, is part Nigerian and part Irish. He went to school in a Nigerian town called Ikene.

Anthony Joshua has acknowledged his heritage and has previously proclaimed, “My heart is with Nigeria, my heart is with Britain, I’m a Nigerian man by blood“.

However, his time in Nigeria came to an end as his parents separated when he was just 12-years-old. Joshua then moved back to England with his mother when he was in seventh grade.

Upon joining Kings Langley Secondary School, Anthony Joshua inclined towards sports and doubled down in that domain.

From laying bricks to becoming a boxing champion

Joshua grew up in Meriden Estate in Garston, Hertfordshire. The area is infamous for its crimes and drug problems. Growing up in this region, he found himself caught up in fights and all sorts of troubles as a teenager.

While focusing on sports and his boxing training, AJ worked as a bricklayer and worked on various construction sites.

Fighting all odds and different kinds of adversities, Anthony Joshua is now a phenomenal athlete. Without a doubt, he will go down as one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time.

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