Anthony Joshua’s parents, Yeta Odusanya and Robert Joshua are both of Nigerian descent. The boxer has always made reference to his mother as a big influence on his career’s success. Yeta Odusanya, raised Anthony alone after she and his father divorced.
His father, Robert Joshua, who is also of Nigerian and Irish descent, is the grandson of one of Sagamu’s greatest men. The patriarch of the Joshua family was one of the first Nigerians to trade with Europeans in the early 20th century. The English boxer was separated from his father when he moved to the UK from Nigeria at the age of 12.
Meet Anthony Joshua’s Parents
Yeta Odusanya
Anthony Joshua’s mother Yeta is a social worker. Following a split from Anthony’s father, she took it upon herself to raise the boxer and his siblings, Jacob, Loretta, and Janet, singlehandedly and also went back to using her maiden name “Odusanya”. She also moved to Jamaica and later England with the boxer.
Yeta Odusanya is of Nigerian descent and comes from the Yoruba-speaking ethnic group located in Southwestern Nigeria. As a single mother, she managed to provide for her children.
As a result of her hard work, AJ has often been praised for raising him on the right track. To reward all her love and support, her son bought an ex-council home for her for about 175,000 Euros in North London. Despite amassing a fortune in his career, Aj has continued to live with his mother.
However, he once rented a 20,000 Euros weekly mansion sometimes back in 2017. It was said that he did it to prepare for his big fight with Wladimir Klitschko. He later moved back to mum’s.
During the 2020 pandemic lockdown, Yeta Odusanya’s son invited his niece and his cousin to the house. Besides buying a home for his mother, said he has also bought her a range rover and has taken her to several places for vacation.
Although she is his biggest inspiration, the celebrity mum has only been to a few of his fights. This is because she doesn’t like seeing her son being punched in the ring.
Besides taking care of AJ, Yeta also takes care of AJ’s son Joseph ‘JJ’ Joshua, whom he had with his ex-girlfriend, Nicole Osbourne in 2015.
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Robert Joshua
Anthony Joshua’s father Robert Joshua was absent during his formative years but they still share a strong bond. Robert is also of Nigerian descent. He comes from one of the greatest families in Sagamu. His family’s patriarch was the late Omo-Oba Daniel Adebambo Joshua, who happens to be one of the first set of Nigerians to engage in trade with the Europeans in the early 20th century.
Robert Joshua’s grandfather was one of the wealthiest and most educated men in his region. Although he had many wives and children, he could afford to send his children to school abroad. It was while Robert’s father was studying abroad that he met and married an Irish woman. The Irish woman happens to be Robert’s mother.
While not much has been uncovered about him, it is known that he remarried after his marriage with Yeta ended. From the union, he had seven more children.
Interestingly, Anthony Joshua once revealed his fighting spirit comes from his father. He also described his relationship with his father as a good one.
In 2017, both father and son were seen in the ring after Anthony retained his heavyweight world championship title. Reports say he brought his father to the UK ahead of his heavyweight clash. According to reports, Robert had previously had ring-side seats for Anthony’s bouts.
During one of the bouts in 2019, Robert got upset with his son’s promoter, Eddie Hearn. This was after AJ’s shocking defeat to Andy Ruiz. After the fight, Robert made a beeline for Hearn in the ring but he was held back by his son. This reportedly happened at Madison Square Garden in New York.
According to other sources, Robert was furious with the promoter for not handling his son’s career well, especially his inability to book a fight with Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury. In 2020, the professional boxer revealed he still has a positive relationship with Hearn, who has been his promoter since he made his professional debut in 2013.
Yeta Odusanya and Robert Joshua’s son has been making them proud in the ring. Anthony Joshua is a two-time former unified world heavyweight champion. He has also held the WBA, IBF, WBO, and IBO titles between 2016 and 2021.
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