Aryna Sabalenka’s fiance Georgios Opens Up About Financial Struggles and Cancer Diagnosis Before Building Multi-Million-Dollar Oakberry Brand

Aryna Sabalenka got engaged to Georgios Frangulis in March this year after the tennis ace playfully called him out during her on-court interview. Sabalenka met Frangulis in January 2024 when she became the brand ambassador for his acai brand Oakberry.

The Brazilian founded the health food company in 2016. Oakberry first started as a kiosk before it became a multi-million-dollar brand. It wasn’t a smooth journey, however. Frangulis made an appearance on The Venture podcast, during which he opened up about being diagnosed with cancer and struggling financially that year. In spite of all that, he took a leap of faith.

August 2016, I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer, I was broke, I had no money, and I needed surgery and to open my first Oakberry location… You either have to go ‘()’, or you have to think ‘it cannot get any worse’. Nobody thought I could be paying super expensive rent selling acai bowls because nobody was doing it. From day one, people really understood what we were trying to do, and Oakberry became a thing quite fast.

Frangulis also made an appearance on the Money Buy Happiness podcast, during which he talked about the criticism he faces for coming to Sabalenka’s matches to cheer for her. He said he can run his company while traveling around the world with Sabalenka.

You have to make people relate to the brand, so they made their choice because of the brand. And then they’re gonna choose the product. My whole life, people thought I was a dreamer or crazy. They’re going to try to prevent you from risk, but if you are a risk-taker, you have to never listen to the naysayers.

Georgios Frangulis added

Sabalenka, at present, is competing at the Cincinnati Open. She registered a straight-set win over Talia Gibson to kick off her campaign. She will next be playing against Wang Xinyu.

Aryna Sabalenka corrects reporter after Elena Rybakina was left out of Grand Slam conversation

In the pre-tournament press conference, when a journalist told Aryna Sabalenka, “You, Iga [Swiatek], Coco [Gauff] probably three of the top players on the tour in recent years, all still fighting for that first Grand Slam,” the World No.1 pointed out that a big player had been left out of the conversation: Elena Rybakina.

You forgot Elena, yeah, but it’s okay. She’s kind of like number two right now.

It was Rybakina who stopped Sabalenka from winning the Australian Open this year. Rybakina then lost the Indian Wells final to the four-time Grand Slam singles champion and won the Stuttgart Open by defeating Wimbledon runner-up Karolina Muchova.

The Kazakh ace arrived in Cincinnati after her defeat to Swiatek in the final of the Canadian Open. Rybakina, in fact, is on the cusp of reaching her career-best No.1 ranking. She will need to have a better run than Sabalenka in Cincinnati to dethrone her from the top.

Sabalenka has also played four finals this season. After winning in Brisbane and losing in Belbourne, the 28-year-old beat Rybakina in Indian Wells and Gauff in Miami to complete the Sunshine Double. But since her win in Miami, Sabalenka has made just one semifinal (in Berlin).

Swiatek is playing in Cincinnati as the defending champion. In Toronto last week, she ended her title drought, winning her first title since the 2025 Korea Open.

Gauff, however, last won a title at the 2025 Wuhan Open. She has played two finals so far this season, in Miami and Rome, losing them to Sabalenka and Elina Svitolina, respectively. After Cincinnati, the US Open will kick off on August 30. Sabalenka is the reigning champion.

Also read: Coco Gauff’s Ex-Coach Demands Tennis Rule Overhaul After Novak Djokovic’s Loss at Cincinnati