NDOLO Alexandra

Personal Information

Residence Cologne, GER

Occupation Athlete, Model, Writer

Languages English, German, Polish

License number 13081986005

Club

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Sport Specific Information

When and where did you begin this sport? After taking up modern pentathlon at age nine, she began focusing on fencing in 2007 in Bonn, Germany.

Why this sport? "I like the combination of tactics and precision, the thrill and the possibility of discovering my limits. Fighting with the epee comes closest to being in a real sword fight because it's not only attacking that is important."

Club / Team TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen: Germany

Name of coach Hugo Dergal [club]

Handedness Left

General Interest

Nicknames Lexi (Facebook profile, 20 Feb 2022)

Hobbies Travel, music, art. (Facebook page, 10 Mar 2021)

Memorable sporting achievement Competing at the 2022 World Cup event in Tallinn, Estonia, which was the first time she represented Kenya. (dw.com, 09 Apr 2023; Instagram profile, 13 Nov 2022)

Sporting philosophy / motto "The only time you should look back is to see how far you've come." (Facebook page, 23 Oct 2020)

Milestones She became the first female fencer to represent Kenya at a World Cup event when she competed at the 2022 Glaive de Tallinn in Estonia. (SportsDeskOnline, 06 Jun 2023; dw.com, 09 Apr 2023; FIE, 11 Nov 2022)

Ambitions To win a gold medal at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. (dw.com, 09 Apr 2023; Facebook profile, 27 Jul 2023; bayer.com, 03 Apr 2024; citizen.digital, 04 Apr 2024)

Other information HERITAGE
She was born to a Polish mother and a Kenyan father. Her late father Donald moved to Poland to study for a master's degree, and then relocated to Germany to study for a PhD. Having represented Germany in fencing earlier in her career, including at six editions of the world championships, she began competing for Kenya in 2022. "I had prepared myself mentally in advance with my sports psychologist. Or so I thought. But then I was there on my own, wearing the Kenyan colours for the first time, seeing the Kenyan flag in the hall, and I thought, 'OK, this is all a bit much'. I had a huge lump in my throat. If, in 30 years' time, people recognise fencing in Kenya as an established sport, then that will be enough for me." (dw.com, 09 Apr 2023; LinkedIn profile, 06 Apr 2023, 31 Mar 2022; Facebook page, 21 Feb 2021; slow-journalism.com, 16 May 2020; alexandra-ndolo.de, 30 Jan 2017; bundeswehr.de, 26 Aug 2011)

KENYA FENCING FEDERATION, NOC SWITCH
She is a co-founder and board member of the Kenya Fencing Federation, which was granted membership of the International Fencing Federation [FIE] in 2019. She has also helped with the set up of fencing schools in Nairobi, Kenya, and with scholarship programmes for Kenyan fencers in South Africa. "Long before this biggest step so far [gaining FIE membership], and ever since, our team has been continually working on furthering the sport of fencing in Kenya. I want to create a system which enables us to work with children and support them." (dw.com, 09 Apr 2023; LinkedIn profile, 06 Apr 2023, 31 Mar 2022; Facebook profile, 07 Dec 2020; slow-journalism.com, 16 May 2020)

SPORTS SOLDIER
She has served as a soldier in the sports development programme with the German armed forces [Bundeswehr]. (dw.com, 09 Apr 2023)

FURTHER EDUCATION
She has also studied for a bachelor's degree in business psychology at RFH Cologne University of Applied Sciences in Germany. (LinkedIn profile, 31 Mar 2022; Facebook profile, 20 Feb 2022)