Frances Tiafoe surprises upcoming tennis prospect with £22,000 donation to assist with collegiate expenses

Despite suffering an unfortunate exit at the 2025 Cincinnati Open, American tennis star Frances Tiafoe was in good enough spirits to brighten the day of a young tennis player as the World No.14 made a sizable financial donation to the kid's future.

Tiafoe looked impressive in his first two matches at the ATP Masters 1000 event, cruising through without dropping a set. However, the Maryland native sustained a back injury during his third round match against Danish star Holger Rune, and was forced to retire after losing the first set and trailing 1-3 in the second.

Nonetheless, Tiafoe quickly put the loss behind him as he surprised budding tennis prospect Russel Lokko with a £22,000 donation. Lokko is a collegiate athlete at the University of Louisville, and will be beginning his junior year this fall.

Having already established a fund with the USTA Foundation, Tiafoe hopes to assist upcoming tennis stars by making their collegiate journey easier as they prepare for life on the ATP Tour.

"It's awesome," gushed the former World No.10. "Russell Lokko, he's a junior at Louisville, going to be a junior there at Louisville. I'm super happy for him and excited for him to come and watch him play and hang out with him the last couple days. I was able to give him a 30 grand check.
"My fund within the USTA foundation has been incredible. We've been doing some great stuff, helping NJTL's up, juniors as well. And having Will France, who's someone I grew up with to be able to help me with that and get me on the phone and pick great kids and great players as well."

Tiafoe would delve into his personal relationship with Lokko, stating he was pleased to help the New Jersey native focus. His donation would enable Lokko to spend less time worrying about debt and focus on his studies and tennis.

"For me, this was really special because you get a personal relationship with a guy and you know, understanding that he looked up to me and yeah, we're doing just basic stuff," said Tiafoe. "Understanding that yeah, he's seen me as a good tennis player, but more than that you know, I want to be known as a great person and a real person and he got to see that and I'm happy this is going to take the monkeys off his back a little bit.
"He and his family deserve it. He's a super solid kid, and he deserves his blessing, and I'm happy for him."