Portrait - Angella Okutoyi, the 20-year-old Kenyan who could well make Olympic history

Elio Valotto

le 18/05/2024 à 09h29

3 min to read

Bethany Beach Jeux Olympiques Okutoyi Sherif

20-year-old Angella Okutoyi is on her way to making history. She is well on her way to becoming the first Kenyan to compete in the Olympic Games in Paris this summer.

What began as a childhood dream is about to become a reality for Okutoyi. A surprise winner of the All-Africa Games, the youngest daughter thought she had secured her ticket to the Olympics. Indeed, a place is traditionally reserved for continental champions. However, the Kenyan discovered that a second condition had to be met in order to take part in the Olympics: to be in the world's top 400 by June 10, 2024.

This week, Angella Okutoyi is ranked 544th in the world. Questioned on the subject, she admits to having discovered the rule: "If I'd known about it beforehand, maybe I'd have played more tournaments during the summer or autumn."
Remember, she shocked the tennis world by winning the All-Africa Games. Her benchmark match came in the semi-finals, when she toppled Mayar Shérif, the titleholder and 70th in the world at the time. At the end of an immense match lasting over 4 hours, she won a historic victory (5-7, 7-5, 7-6). Having held her nerve in the final, she had achieved the impossible in March: to win the All-Africa Games.

For her, the race against the clock is on. According to several estimates, she is 65 points short of confirming her participation in the Olympic Games. A very attainable goal for such a talented player. But who is Angella Okutoyi, the Kenyan who is about to make history?

Okutoyi is driven by a particular strength. If she is on the way to an extraordinary career, it's also because her destiny is extraordinary. Orphaned at birth, her grandmother saved her and her sister from the orphanage. Raising a total of 5 children on very limited financial means, her grandmother's incredible strength of character enabled her to take an interest in tennis. Interviewed by L'Equipe, the Kenyan recalls: "It was very hard. People have the image of tennis as a sport for the rich, and it's a reality. I just wanted to play the sport I love, and I'm glad my family gave me the opportunity, that they didn't choose for me. Otherwise it would have been running, that's for sure."

Financially supported by the Kenyan Federation and the Kenyan Olympic Committee, she embodies the hope of an entire nation, indeed an entire continent. Carried along by an absolutely insane local fervor, she refuses to wake up. Looking ahead to the Olympic Games, she declares: "Once I'm sure I'm going to the Games, it's going to be crazy.

Accustomed to playing on ochre, but in very harsh conditions, she is already looking forward to discovering the courts of Roland-Garros: "I grew up on the hardest clay in the world, the 'murram'. It's really the worst. It's toughened me up, but to play on a real clay court in Paris would be incredible." (comments relayed by L'Equipe)

If she is to fulfill her dream, Okutoyi knows what she still has to do: get the 65 WTA points she's missing. And that starts this week, at Bethany Beach (WTA 35). After that, she confides that she plans to head for Tunisia to play a few tournaments, the country where she was crowned African U18 champion in 2021.