LONDON: World Heavyweight Boxing Champion Anthony Joshua receives wave of abuse after he shared a picture of himself praying in a mosque in Dubai.
‘Besides luck, hard work & talent.. Prayer is a solid foundation. It was nice to join my brother as he led through afternoon prayer (asr),’ he tweeted to his 800,000 followers.
Besides luck, hard work & talent.. Prayer is a solid foundation. It was nice to join my brother as he led through afternoon prayer (asr) 🙏🏾 pic.twitter.com/KJ4f2lu3mP
— Anthony Joshua (@anthonyjoshua) January 17, 2017
The 27-old year old Watford-born boxer who won gold at the London 2012 Olympics is not a practising Muslim but has an interest in the faith.
The British heavyweight champion was hit by a torrent of abuse from so-called fans soon after he shared the photo.
https://twitter.com/kylerowland90/status/821413398630072320
One Mark Warren wrote: “MUSLIM??? That’s me defo not a supporter or fan.”
Another named Roy wrote: “Disappointed, won’t be watching you fight anymore.”
One more simply put: “Unfollow unsupport.”
And thankfully, some embraced it and stood up for the boxing star.
https://twitter.com/n42imrashid/status/821333865826553856
https://twitter.com/AlfieQuadir/status/821351543828021249
https://twitter.com/memphistiano/status/821309317186027522
he may loses 100000 fans , but he wins are our hearts, muslims's heart dude ,3 billion people!
— AZAHABI (@Abdeldahbi13) January 17, 2017
A woman named Helin wrote: “Like @anthonyjoshua really cares about the views of some ignorants. Remember Muhammad Ali, one of the greatest boxers ever.”