Before the month of June ended, the talk in town was all about the relationship of Axel Mpoyo, a well-known basketball player in Rwanda who played for various teams including REG Basketball, and Navida Duz, daughter of socialite Jeanine Noach. The couple went viral after pictures of their vacation in Zanzibar were leaked on different social media platforms, taking the internet by storm and leaving many asking more about the new celeb couple trending in town. Despite being the last born to socialite Jeanine Noach, what makes social media talking about Navida is the fact that she is a first cousin to the famous Mackenzies girls that own Zoi, one of the biggest fashion brands in Rwanda. Navida is not the only member of the Mackenzies family that has attracted professional basketball ballers, but also Kathia Kamali, her cousin sister and sister to Naomie Nishimwe, Miss Rwanda 2020, who is reportedly dating Adonis Filer, the American point guard who also played for teams like REG BBC in the Rwanda basketball league. Kelly Uwineza, another member of the Mackenzie girls, also tied the knot with David Nsengiyunva who also stars for APR BBC, making her the third member of the family to fall in love with a top basketball player in Rwanda's basketball league. The three couples, along with Naomie Ishimwe and Michael Tesfay, are among the most trending couples in Kigali today, and one may ask, how did foreign basketballers meet the Mackenzies? ALSO READ: Kelly Mackenzie to wed long time fiance In an instagram live back in 2022, Adonis said that his relationship with the Mackenzie's dates back in 2020 when he first touched down in Kigali to play for Patriots Basketball Club. This, he said, was when one of his friends introduced him to the Mackenzies girls and gave him their social media platforms. “I followed most of them and started talking to Naomie, Brenda and Kathia. That was my first encounter with the Mackenzi's,” said Adonis on an Instagram live in which Naomie Nishimwe and Clevelend Thomas also joined. The renowned basketball player later bragged how communicating with the famous girls became a problem, but later got close to some of the girls and introduced them to his teammates including the likes of Mpoyo, Kendall Gray and Cleveland Thomas. A few months later, pictures of the famous Basketball players and the Mackenzies girls hanging out in different parts of the country started trending. It was not until this year’s Basketball Africa League (BAL) finals that some of the basketballers came out and made their relationships with the famous Mackenzie’s public, starting with Mpoyo and Navida. Since the year began, Adonis is also seen back to back with Kathia Mackenzie in different places around town, a move that proves reports that the two might be together.
