Sylvia Gathoni Wahome (born 5 July 1998), better known online as QueenArrow, is a Kenyan

esports Esports, short for electronic sports, is a form of competition using video games. Esports often takes the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions, particularly between professional players, individually or as teams. Although orga ...

player and content creator. She began her competitive career in 2017 and specialises in

fighting game A fighting game, also known as a versus fighting game, is a video game genre, genre of video game that involves combat between two or more players. Fighting game combat often features mechanics such as Blocking (martial arts), blocking, grappli ...

s, primarily in the ''

Tekken is a Japanese Media mix, media franchise centered on a series of fighting game, fighting video and arcade games developed and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment (formerly Namco). The franchise also includes film and print adaptations. The ...

'' series. In 2018, she became the first woman in East Africa to be signed by a professional esports team when she joined American organisation XiT Woundz (now known as XiT Gaming).

Early life

Gathoni began playing video games at the age of three, having been influenced by her older brother and cousin. She enjoyed playing games such as ''

Super Mario (also known as and ) is a platform game series created by Nintendo starring their mascot, Mario. It is the central series of the greater Mario (franchise), ''Mario'' franchise. At least one ''Super Mario'' game has been released for every m ...

'', ''

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'' and '' Tapper'', but later gravitated towards fighting games, in particular ''

Mortal Kombat ''Mortal Kombat'' is an American media franchise centered on a series of video games originally developed by Midway Games in 1992. The development of the first game was originally based on an idea that Ed Boon and John Tobias had of making a v ...

'' and ''

Street Fighter , commonly abbreviated as ''SF'' or スト (''Suto''), is a Japanese media franchise centered on a series of fighting video and arcade games developed and published by Capcom. The first game in the series was released in 1987, followed by six ...

''. She was introduced to ''Tekken'' after her father bought her a

PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October 2000, in Europe on 24 November 2000, and in Australia on 3 ...

console.

Career

In 2017, Gathoni began her competitive career with the '' Mortal Kombat XL'' tournament at the inaugural edition of the East African Gaming Convention, finishing in fourth place. In January 2018, Gathoni began competing in a local ''Tekken'' league known as the Tekken 254 Circuit (now known as the Savanna Circuit), ranking nineteenth and seventeenth overall in Seasons One and Two, respectively. In May 2018, Gathoni was signed by XiT Woundz (now known as XiT Gaming), an esports organisation based in

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, becoming the first Kenyan and the first woman in East Africa to be signed by a professional esports team. In October 2019, Gathoni earned her first major tournament win at the

Nyeri Nyeri is a town situated in the Central Highlands of Kenya. It is the county headquarters of Nyeri County. The town was the central administrative headquarters of the country's former Central Province. Following the dissolution of the former pr ...

leg of the

Safaricom Safaricom PLC is a listed Kenyan mobile network operator headquartered at Safaricom House in Nairobi, Kenya. It is the largest telecommunications provider in Kenya, and one of the most profitable companies in the East and Central Africa region. Th ...

Blaze Esports Tour. In January 2020, Gathoni left XiT Woundz to join British team Brutal Democracy. She announced her departure from the team in August the same year. In February 2021, American esports team UYU announced the signing of Gathoni as part of their content team. In October 2021, Gathoni graduated with a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

degree from the

Catholic University of Eastern Africa Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA), is a multi-campus private university in Kenya. It is accredited by the Commission for University Education in Kenya. Location The main campus of the university is located along Bogani East Road, ...

. In June 2022, Gathoni was named in the ''Forbes Africa'' 30 Under 30 class of 2022. On 17 October 2022, Gathoni was unveiled as a sponsored

Red Bull Red Bull is a brand of energy drinks of Austria, Austrian company Red Bull GmbH. With 38% market share, it is the most popular energy drink brand as of 2019. Since its launch in 1987, more than 100 billion cans of Red Bull have been sold worldwid ...

athlete, becoming the first Kenyan athlete of any discipline to do so.

Tournament record

Tekken 254 Circuit / Savanna Circuit

Other

References

External links

* * {{Twitch, TheQueenArrow98, {{PAGENAMEBASE 1998 births Living people Kikuyu people Kenyan esports players Women esports players Fighting game players Tekken players