Style Guide: Victoria Mboko goes for gold in memorable Roland Garros debut

PARIS, France—Has Canadian tennis found its new golden girl? At just 18 years old, Victoria Mboko made a dazzling entrance onto the world stage Sunday at Roland Garros.

After powering through three rounds of qualifying—without dropping a set—Mboko delivered again, this time in her Grand Slam main draw debut.

Born in North Carolina to Congolese parents and raised in Toronto, Mboko played with fearless precision and emotional poise to defeat New Zealand’s Lulu Sun 6-1, 7-6 (4) on Court 9.

“I mean, it’s been my first Grand Slam ever, so there’s a lot of emotions going on,” she gushed in her post-match press conference. “I’m also just very excited to be here, to qualify, honestly just to win my first round in the main draw.

“I’m super content right now and I’m super happy with the way I’ve been playing. Hopefully I can continue on doing the same thing.”

“I remember asking one of the people on the Wilson team, like, Hey, what does the kit look like for French Open?” Mboko recalled in Paris. “They sent me back a sketch of what it was going to be, and I was like, Oh this is really pretty!

"I tried it on for the first time with my mom on the phone, and my sister was there watching too. They both said, that was made for you!”

Her look features a rib-knit sleeveless polo and high-rise pleated tennis skirt—both in the “Golden” colorway—as part of Wilson’s Roland Garros collection, inspired by “the iconic terre battue en 1999.” Wilson also sponsors Marta Kostyuk, Peyton Stearns, and Alycia Parks. Mboko signed a head-to-toe deal with the brand in January 2024.

“Everyone at the Wilson team is so nice and such good people, they’re very cooperative and great. I’m so lucky and happy to be a part of it,” Mboko said.

“It’s kind of a new partnership with me, so we’ll see what the future holds. But so far? They’ve been really stepping up!”

After years of battling a persistent knee injury, Mboko looks ready to make her mark on the sport’s biggest stages. She’ll face 23-year-old German Eva Lys in the second round at Roland Garros.