Angella Okutoyi – Tennis barrier breaker who rose from a children's orphanage to the Grand Slam

“I would not have been where I am today if it were not for my grandmother Mary Ndong’a,” history setting Angella Okutoyi regales on a chilled Friday morning on Court 6 at the Nairobi Club Tennis Grounds.

It is her first time taking to the courts after her record breaking achievements at the Australian Open Junior Championship where she became the first Kenyan woman to play at the prestigious Grand Slam tournament.

Not only did she stop at just making an appearance in Melbourne, the teenage sensation also became the first Kenyan woman to win a Grand Slam match when she defeated Italy’s Federica Urgesi in the first round of her maiden appearance in a tennis major.

After slicing past the first round, the African U-18 tennis champion extended her history streak as she aced her way against Australia’s Zara Larke in round two before her fairytale run was unfortunately curtailed in the third round by Serbia’s Lola Radivojevic who agonizingly defeated her in straight sets just one round before the quarter final stages.

While the 18 year old nursed the obvious pain that comes with losing a match, an entire nation had been stirred to the very core by the heroics of this teenager who had defied all odds in growing up in an orphanage to emerge as Kenya’s best, Africa’s supremo and who had now rubbed shoulders with the world’s elite in one of the biggest tennis sporting stages in Australia.

Her appearance was also the first time a Kenyan featured at a Grand Slam since Christian Vitulli did so 16 years ago in Wimbledon. That it had taken a whooping sixteen years to get another Kenyan on the big stage, was a truly ground breaking moment not only for Okutoyi but the whole country as well.

“To make history here in Melbourne has been very special. I am happy that people in Kenya have been able to see that and they, together with African players more generally, realize they have a chance to do the same.

In Kenya, most people who play tennis are not well-off. Their families, like mine, do not have much and I just want to encourage them and say that that situation does not mean they cannot reach here, and it does not define them. It can actually give them a drive and a motivation to do well,” the confident 18 year old girl told the International Tennis Federation (ITF) after her exit.

In Australia, Okutoyi’s showing was as much as inspirational as it also served as a timely reminder of Oscar winning Lupita Nyongo’s famous quote – “No matter where you are from, your dreams are valid.”

She might have just come from the confines of an orphanage in Nairobi, but there is certainly not an end to the depth of dreams that she carries in her. To conquer the journey that is still ahead is by no chance going to be any mean feat. But the fact that she has gotten to where she is, in a sport that was not given attention in the country until recently due to her heroics, is a sign of the star that is daring to shine.

But it was never easy getting to where she currently is. This is the story of a barrier breaker who dared to follow her dreams.

Growing Up

When Okutoyi and her twin sister Roselida Asumwa were born at the Pumwani Maternity Hospital in Nairobi, their mom - Angella Nyangweso – unfortunately passed on during the delivery process. The already tough situation was not made any easier by the fact that their deserting father was nowhere to be seen ever since the two sisters were orphaned at birth.

At a very difficult time with nowhere else to turn to, that is when their grandmother Mary stepped in to take care of them after that early loss.

Being a cook at the Loreto Convent orphanage that sits next to the Israeli Embassy in Nairobi, her grandmother, who had to balance upto four other odds jobs, bore the additional burden and took the kids in together with her family where they shared a small single servant quarter house.

They had to stay and grow up at the orphanage where missing a meal, save for supper, was not news. The little that they got is all they had to content with.

“My grandmother has really struggled for us ever since our mum passed on. Things were hard on her side because she lost two daughters who were really important to her. She is a single mum and she took care of us since we were young. Small as we were, she would leave us at home as she went to work in order to fend for us and all along there was nobody to help her.

“I remember there were some days we were not even eating and the only meal we could see was dinner. Currently, she is supposed to retire but she cannot do that because she wants to help us since we are still in school. She still has to find money to pay for our rent and school fees. Due to that reason, she asked for one extra year at work just to be able to continue providing for us until we are able to help her,” Okutoyi tells Mozzart Sport.

Okutoyi (left) poses with her sister Rose

“When I see the sacrifice she makes, it really gives me the motivation to do what I am doing. She is my drive on court. Everytime when I am playing, when I think of her, I just want to do what I am meant to do on the court. Having her as my drive really pushes me because the sacrifices she has put on me and the family is really priceless and I do not know how I can repay her.”

Having been dealt an early backhand in life that had no response whatsoever, Okutoyi would make her first date with tennis just aged four. Out of nowhere, her first coach Joe Karanja, who had been hired as the school’s trainer, introduced her to the game after feeling this ‘spiritual calling’ to try out the sport. A watershed moment that kick started Okutoyi’s blooming love for the game.

“When I was four I was introduced to tennis by my teacher Joe Karanja and my uncle Allan Atola. That is how I found myself in a tennis court. Actually, Joe told me that he did not even want to do tennis. He did not even know how to coach at the time but something just told him to pursue tennis. So I think he knew it spiritually but not physically,” she states while laughing.

It is at the same Loreto Convent that Okutoyi would hone her tennis because the orphanage, luckily, had playing courts. From learning the basics of the game at Loreto, she slowly grew from stride to stride as she set her focus on using tennis to alleviate her family status despite her very young age.

“There used to be a Kenya Open tournament and I saw that people were getting money if they won. I wondered. If people are earning money through the sport, why not continue playing it and earn even more money to try and help my grandmother at the stage she is. Those were the earliest defining moments that made me stick to tennis,” the teenager reveals.

Critical ITF Centre

With an unwavering belief, she stuck to the sport, very determined to make it to the top. That is when her undeniable talent, potential, passion and hard work in the game earned her a place to an ITF High Performance Centre in Burundi on a tennis scholarship when she was just 10 years old.

Ironically, it is the Burundi experience that made Okutoyi completely settle on tennis full time. She had toyed with the idea of being a pilot at some point but her first international flight completely killed that dream.

“When I was young, my dream was to be a pilot. But the first time I went into a plane going to Burundi I was like no, I cannot be a pilot. I am afraid of heights so I ruled out that career option,” Okutoyi reminisces.

At that tender age, Okutoyi travelled alone to Burundi. No family, no nothing. Just her and her dream against the world back then in 2014.

“I remember when I travelled it was tough at first for my family and myself also because I was going to a place I was not used to. I also did not know the people apart from seeing them at tournaments. But I think I adapted well and easy because the food and the language were similar to Kenya’s so it was not that difficult and the people were really nice,” she says.

That foray in Burundi is an experience the Kenya Open champion is forever grateful for in her budding tennis journey. Apart from imparting her with the requisite skillset, the history maker reveals how it helped her learn some valuable life lessons.

“I think it really played a critical role in my life because without that maybe I would not have known how to stay with other people very well. It was also the beginning of a new journey so it was a quite great experience,” she remarks.

After a two year stay at the ITF Centre, she came back to the country after war broke out in Burundi. Luckily, the Centre was moved home to Nairobi in 2016 when Tennis Kenya agreed to become the new hosts.

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But just after the High Performance Centre experience in Burundi, success soon started following in Angella’s path. At 14 years old, she exerted her weight in the continent as she became the African U14 champion in Algeria.

In the space of just one week afterwards, Okutoyi went from lifting the African crown to being crowned the youngest ever Kenya Open champion when she came back and ended the dominance of Shufaa Changawa, a three time former champion, on the local scene.

The win over Shufaa at the Kenya Open Tennis Championships came at a time when the Changawa siblings, Shufaa and Ismael, were literally untouchable as they wreaked havoc in the local scene. She only managed to beat Shufaa at a second time of asking after she had been bundled out of the previous year by the former champion.

“After winning the U14 title in Algeria, I went straight into the Kenya Open just one day after arriving back. When I was 13, the first time I played in the tournament, I lost to Shufaa in the quarters or semis I think. The next time I came back was after Algeria and I promised myself to be the one to break her dominance. In a way I was going for revenge as well and it really motivated me. That is when I knocked her out in the finals and won,” Okutoyi gathers proudly.

In winning the 2018 Kenya Open and the U14 title within two weeks, Okutoyi had made it three wins in a row as she had just won the ITF Under-18 tournament in Burundi back in June which saw her join the ITF World Tour team that enabled her visit France, Germany, Belgium and Czech Republic for five weeks between July and August.

All that breakthrough was just the highlight of what was to come. After a difficult year that was ravaged by the novel coronavirus pandemic, Okutoyi managed to write history in 2021 with her best career achievement yet as she won the African Junior Championship.

She became the first Kenyan to hold that crown after seeing off Moroccan Aya El Anouni 6-3, 6-3 in the singles final of the 2021 tournament in Sousse, Tunisia, a tournament that greatly improved her ITF ranking and earned her a slot in the Australian Open main draw rather than the arduous qualifiers.

“I liked that I had people who were really supporting me like the Kenyan team who are a family to me. I really wanted to make them proud when I was in that final especially the coaches. I did everything I could to just win that match so that I could appreciate them, make them proud and feel that all the work they have been doing the fruit is there.”

That victory played a crucial role in getting her to Australia where Okutoyi went to see some of the greatest names on the sport such as Rafael Nadal who broke away with his 21st Grand Slam title and Ashleigh Barty who ended a 44-year title drought for Australian women at the tournament.

Unfortunately, Serena Williams, who is her role model, was not at the tournament. Perhaps the only disappointment. But all along, the 23 time Grand Slam winner has inspired her through her tennis journey.

“For sure I would love to meet Serena. I like her fighting spirit on court. How she motivates herself on court. I really take that with me. Also there is a time she was pregnant and she played a match and no one knew (She went on to win that 2017 Australian Open without dropping a set). You could see the hard work and all that. She is great,” Okutoyi adulates.

To the eyes of many, the 18 year old instantly became the Kenyan Serena. A tower where other girls involved in the sport in the country could draw inspiration from.

Her highs in the game however reminded her of some of the lowest moments that she has endured. A couple of times contemplating even giving everything up in the first place after the frustrations that come with being an athlete.

“When I am outside the country and lose in the first round, a lot of doubt really creeps up in me. Maybe I am not good enough. Maybe that is the level I am in because I am losing in the first round. At those times I have negative thoughts such as even quitting the sport. What’s the point of travelling? Why can’t this opportunity be given to someone else?”

“But I try to compose myself and switch my mentality really quickly before it weighs down on me. Most of the time, after I perform badly in the first round, the next week I go on to do well. For example in Australia, I got knocked out in the first round in a warmup tournament before the Australian Open and afterwards I made it to the third round,” she remarks.

Despite the financial challenges that have always plagued her budding career, forcing her to skip tournaments that consequently see her rankings drop or fail to improve, the Grand Slam participant has never even for once lost faith.

She cuts a figure of extreme confidence. Not just in her personality. But also in her ultimate belief to get to where she wants at the end of it all. As she paints a picture of her current role model status in the Kenyan tennis sphere and what success would mean to her, she does so while once again reiterating the very reason she is playing the sport.

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“I really take it in a positive way (the role model status) but I do not put it so much in my head. I just want to think like I am still not what I am now so that I push myself even more because if I get too comfortable, I will not work harder. In my mind now, I am just thinking like someone who has not even gotten to Australia so it pushes me to work for more,” she insists.

“What drives me is my grandmother. She is the one who makes me do what I am doing. Without her probably I would just be playing tennis for fun. I value her a lot. The recognition from the Australian Open from legends such as Billie Jean King also made me happy, recognized and appreciated at the same time. That gave me the drive to also inspire other people in the world, not just in Kenya and Africa but the whole world.

As we wrap up, Okutoyi finally opens up on what success would mean to her in this long winding road that lies ahead of her.

“My goal was just to reach at the Australian Open as I had written in my tennis diary. That is not the goal anymore. For me, playing the seniors’ Grand Slam would be the ultimate success for me,” the African champion concludes.

At the back of those words, you realize those are dreams that are about to suffer the wrath of being hunted down by Angella Okutoyi. Currently, the tennis ace has started infusing senior tournaments into her schedule as she commences the transition process. So watch this space!

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