What's behind Victoria Mboko's stunning rise in tennis? Power and unflinching belief in herself, coaches say
The 18-year-old emerged victorious against Naomi Osaka in the Canadian Open after flying up the ranks
Before Victoria Mboko emerged victorious to capture the women's singles title at the National Bank Open in Montreal Thursday night, she was a four-year-old on a tennis court in Burlington, Ont., demanding to be fed balls to hit while her siblings trained.
Over the course of a phenomenal winning streak this week, Mboko, 18, became the second youngest player in the Open Era to defeat four Grand Slam champions with her victory over Naomi Osaka, who has won four Grand Slam tournaments.
Pierre Lamarche remembers Mboko standing on the baseline of the court as he coached her sister, Gracia, 10 years her senior and a talented tennis player who competed at the national level.
"That's how it all started," Lamarche, who would go on to coach Mboko, too, told CBC's Heather Hiscox Thursday morning.
Mboko held back tears as she spoke to a Sportsnet reporter moments after her win Thursday.
"When I was younger, these achievements felt so far away," she said. "Honestly, I would tell myself to never stop believing."
'Attitude of no fear'
On Wednesday, she eked out a win in the Canadian Open semifinal against 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina, 26. After losing the first set, Mboko mounted a nail-biting comeback.
"I knew that last night was gonna be a very tough match," said Lamarche, noting Mboko lost to Rybakina 6-3, 7-5 two weeks ago in the quarterfinals of the Washington Open.
Lamarche worried Rybakina's style of play would be trickier for his former student to face, but he says Mboko's performance "and really, her attitude of no fear, just showed up again. And she just hates losing so much that she competes at a level that I've never seen an athlete compete [at]."
Mboko's former coach says her comeback against Rybakina in some ways echoed her very foundations in the sport.
She learned to play with her sister, and Lamarche recalls that Mboko hated losing to her so much that when it happened, "she would kind of sulk," despite being so much younger.
"Eventually, she conquered her sister," he said.
'The sky's the limit'
Mboko has flown up women's tennis rankings, going from 85th at the start of the Canadian Open to 25th by the end. To start the year, Mboko was outside of the top 300. Later this month, she will play in the U.S. Open.
Wednesday, after her win against Rybakina, Mboko foreshadowed her success, saying, "I'm truly a believer of, you can do anything you're inspired to do and, you know, the sky's always the limit."
Lamarche started coaching Mboko and her three siblings 15 years ago, after encouraging their mother to move them from Toronto to Burlington where he was based.
Mboko's parents, Cyprien Mboko and Godee Kitadi, had moved the family from North Carolina, where Mboko was born. They recently told the Women's Tennis Association that they had emigrated to the U.S. from the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1999 due to political turmoil.
"They're a great family, very supportive, the type of family that you would do anything for," Lamarche said. "And they did a lot for us."
The coach says that power, both physical and mental, has been a hallmark of Mboko's stunning rise in Montreal this week, including in her victories over Rybakina, Sofia Kenin and 2025 French Open winner Coco Gauff.
Ahead of Mboko's match against Osaka Thursday, Lamarche said that power would also serve her well playing against the Japanese-American Grand Slam champion.
"Power on her serve, power on her forehand and power in her mental tenacity," he said.
Overcoming setbacks
The road to this year's Canadian Open hasn't always been smooth for the young player, says Sarah Kadi.
The registered coach with the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) and Tennis Canada accompanied an eight-year-old Mboko to a tournament in Florida 10 years ago.
At the time, Kadi says Mboko was already exhibiting the qualities that have helped her win over and over again — she has 33 wins under her belt so far this year.
"She was just confident and wanted to win at anything," she told CBC News Network. "You could see the belief she had in herself."
Though that belief has stayed strong, Kadi says Mboko has faced setbacks in recent years, including a number of knee injuries, as well as having to spend nearly half a year away from her family because of COVID-19 restrictions while on the road for competitions.
"Her poise on court has been exceptional, facing these big-time players," Kadi said. "She steps on court with no doubt. You know she believes she can win and she's showing it."
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