Aussie boxing champion dead at 36 in horror skydiving accident
A former Australian boxing champion has died at the age of 36 following a skydiving accident in Queensland on Wednesday.
Josh Frederiksen died in a Brisbane hospital after being airlifted there from the parachuting location at Toogoolawah, north-west of the state capital.
Josh Frederiksen died after a skydiving accident near Brisbane. Facebook
His parachute is believed to have opened correctly during the jump, but early investigations suggest he hit turbulence near the ground which resulted in a hard landing.
He suffered significant injuries and could not be saved.
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“APF (Australian Parachute Federation) is deeply saddened by the death of one of our members following a landing accident,” organisation CEO Stephen Porter said in a statement.
“Our thoughts are with his family, friends and the skydiving community.
“Skydiving carries inherent risks, and while we work continually to reduce those risks, they cannot be eliminated entirely.”
Frederiksen was an experienced skydiver who had completed more than 100 successful jumps.
He was also a professional boxer who had 20 professional fights and once held the Australian light-heavyweight title.
A GoFundMe page was set up in the wake of his death, and it had reached more than $25,000 in donations on Friday morning.
The sporting community paid tribute to him on Friday.
“The world lost a special man through a tragic skydiving accident last night,” fellow boxer Nick Midgley said in an Instagram post.
“I’ve honestly never heard anyone say a bad word about Josh Frederiksen. He walked out his values and morals in everything he did, and I considered him a brother to me. So I’m absolutely crushed, I also know how his death will impact a lot of other people too. My condolences to his family and loved ones.”
