Multi-talented Angela Kerek, ex-WTA Tennis Player, Now Sustainable Finance Lawyer, Joins EcoAthletes Champions Team

While much of the world got used to living in COVID-inspired bubbles for much of the past 18 months, Angela Kerek has lived in different kinds of bubbles for most of her life.

Born and raised in Romania, Kerek immigrated to Germany where she honed what turned out to be prodigious tennis talent. She entered the pro tennis bubble when she debuted on the WTA tour when she was 16. Eventually, she rose to 140 in the world rankings during what would turn out to be an eight-year pro career that ended in 1996.

 While being among the top 100-150 or so pro tennis players in the world means you likely would be set for life financially, it turns out that getting to that level and living in that bubble was a purgatory of sorts for the powerful right-hander with an elegant backhand. 

“I found that living the life of a WTA tour player was practice, recover, compete and then practice, recover, compete, on and on,” Kerek recalled. “The pressure in that bubble is intense because the competition is so fierce, and the pyramid is so steep. Only the top 50 or so players made a real living at it in those years. When it became apparent that I wasn’t going to make it to that level, I decided to leave the bubble, go to school, and get my education. So, starting in 1996 I ran away from sports and towards a career in law.”

It turns out that Kerek found some similarities between being a pro tennis player and a corporate finance lawyer and now finance partner at the global law firm Morrison & Foerster.

 “After a while I saw that the world of transaction law was simply a different kind of bubble,” asserted Kerek. “It’s about performing at the top level so you can win for your clients, which I have been determined to do. Yet you often have to push yourself beyond your boundaries to be able to perform and that can be dangerous.”

 It was the birth of her second child in 2017 that provided the impetus for having deeper thoughts about her bubbles — and eventually led her to become an EcoAthletes Champion.

“After having run away from sports for almost two decades, I started to train again, in part to lose the 40 pounds I had gained during my pregnancies and to stop my downward spiral and a perceived physical decline,” Kerek acknowledged. “To do so, I had to rewire myself and accept and embrace the ‘athlete’ part of myself. I ended up also training as a nutrition coach, which led me to start a health and wellbeing program at my firm. This has allowed me to be much more mindful of the ‘bubble aspects’ of the job and aspire to make a real difference for my colleagues.”

Sustainability — including climate change — plays a key role in Kerek’s practice and life: “My approach is to combine my changed mindset as an athlete and as a lawyer to do good for humanity and the environment. To do so, I help my colleagues and coaching clients to be mindful and strong, while in business I support mature corporates implement their financing strategies and support them in their transition towards sustainability. And I love my work with startups — I only work with those that have sustainability as part of their foundation. I help them with the implementation of their sustainable growth strategies.”

She sees becoming an EcoAthletes Champion as a powerful opportunity to accelerate the impact of her, yes, bubble-awareness work.

“EcoAthletes helps athletes go outside of their comfort zones so they can lead on climate,” said Kerek. “I am excited to be a part of this team because I want to be able to help educate athletes and corporate executives on climate so they can use their platforms to make a difference on this existential issue.”

Lew Blaustein, founder, and President of EcoAthletes, sees Kerek as an important addition to the Champions roster.

“Angela Kerek brings a welcome combination of climate curiosity and knowledge to the Champions team, along with a familiarity with corporations who could potentially benefit from partnering with EcoAthletes,” Blaustein noted. “She has been both a seeker and a doer in her tennis and legal careers and those qualities will help her make a real impact for us.”

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