The first-time Challenger champion made history not just for his native Ivory Coast but more importantly for tennis in Africa
One Sunday evening in April, under the night sky in Abidjan, Eliakim Coulibaly created a moment of history. A bustling Ivorian crowd filled out the seats at Le Central Club, hoping to see one of their own deliver a first ATP Challenger title for the nation.
Their support was not in vain. As Coulibaly sealed the tournament on championship point, the crowd erupted in celebration. The 22-year-old Ivorian defeated the Tunisian top seed Aziz Dougaz 6-7, 6-4, 6-4 to claim his and Ivory Coast’s first-ever crown at Challenger level.
After suffering a disappointing first-round defeat in the first edition of the tournament the previous week, at Adidjan 2 Coulibaly won five straight matches and only dropped two sets en route to the biggest tournament win of his career so far.
The victory is a highly significant moment not only for Coulibaly, or for his nation Ivory Coast, but for African tennis.
Coulibaly hails from Abidjan, making this title win feel like a full circle moment. The Ivorian left his home city at an early age to pursue his dream of becoming a professional tennis player. Moving to Casablanca, Morocco, where he would spend a good chunk of his teenage years, Coulibaly trained at the ITF High Performance Tennis Centre and in 2020 became one of the first African players to crack the top 20 in the junior world rankings.
Last November, he won the M25 Maputo on the ITF Tennis World Tour to add to his nine other ITF titles. That was his biggest win before his triumph in Abidjan last month. His efforts on home soil have seen him reach a new career high of 271 in the world, leaving him closer to the top 200, which would see him make the cut for Grand Slam qualifying draws.
The Ivorian is currently the highest ranked West African player in the world, making it all the more fitting that he has won one of the region’s biggest tournaments. It will no doubt serve as a source of inspiration for other aspiring players on the continent.
This was also the first year Ivory Coast hosted Challenger-tier level events. Abidjan, the former capital city, is used to hosting major sports tournaments. Like most countries in Africa and arguably the world, football trumps other sports. Ivory Coast hosted and won the 2023 edition of the Africa Cup of Nations.
Now, there appears to be a desire to grow tennis in the country, with Abidjan joining the likes of Brazzaville (Congo) and Kigali (Rwanda) as West African tournament stops on the Challenger circuit. As a consequence, local players are benefiting too. Both the singles and doubles draws at Abidjan 1 and Abidjan 2 included wildcard-recipients from Burkina Faso, Senegal, Togo and of course Ivory Coast.
Tournament organisers also embraced the opportunity to promote Ivorian culture. The courts were painted in the colours of the national flag – the famous orange making up the body, with white lines and green surrounding areas. Coulibaly laying on the ground in celebration after his win made for nice optics. The trophy awarded was also significant. Coulibaly received an elephant figurine, an animal which is a source of pride for the country and the nickname of the men’s national football team.
Overall, the Abidjan Challengers, especially Abidjan 2, was another big step towards growing the sport on the continent. With more African tournaments come more opportunities for African players.
The efforts from Coulibaly, tennis's African giant, will go a long away in not only sprouting his own career but also inspiring others in the region coming up behind him.
Words by Caleb Akpo-Young