Daljang Wol died with four fellow university students in a car crash in Essex in February

A FOUNDATION has been set up in the name of a talented basketball player who died in a car crash.

Former Westminster School pupil Daljang Wol, 22, was one of four univer­sity students killed in a collision in Colchester on February 1.

Two of his closest friends, James Mulholland, 25, and Joshua Akinbiyi, 23, have decided to set up the Daljang Foundation in his memory with the aim to involve the community and give back both to the local area and those less fortunate.

Mr Akinbiyi said: “His name actually means ‘smile’ and if you knew Daljang he had the type of smile that made you smile, the type of laugh that would make you laugh, it was a testament to who he was and his character.

“I always had a vision of growing a foundation. The foundation at that time had no name but we knew we wanted to give back to three countries specifically: the Philippines where James is from; Nigeria, where I am from; and the UK, where we both reside.”

James Mulholland and Joshua Akinbiyi

He added: “The name Daljang Foundation is self-explanatory and comes back to the fact that Daljang was a huge giver. Sharing was second nature.

“It’s funny thinking about it now because Daljang was the youngest in the group but he always had no hesitation to always help others.”

Mr Akinbiyi and Mr Mulholland said the foundation was aiming to set up water fountains, basketball courts and training camps in the countries mentioned and other initiatives closer to home.

Mr Mulholland is currently working as a coach at New Horizons, a charity in Camden, coaching basketball to homeless people from the ages of 18 to 24.

The hope is that this kind of work will be replicated by the Daljang Foundation, along with free basketball sessions and camps.

Mr Mulholland said: “Josh and I grew up in council estate flats so these things motivate us and make us want to get to a certain stage and then give back.

“It’s not normal for people our age to have this sense of giving and urgency and that’s because we’ve gone through things.

“This is not just because Daljang has passed away, this was going to happen whether Daljang passed away or not. The reason why Daljang is part of this is because, 1,000 per cent, if Daljang was alive he would have been a part of this.

“His death made us realise we didn’t have to wait. We don’t have to be millionaires, we can do it while we’re building.”