Alex Eala Sits Front Row at Chanel in Paris
Alex Eala attended Chanel’s Spring/Summer 2027 show on Oct. 5 at the Grand Palais. She is 21. She came after a bronze medal finish at the 2026 Asian Games. While other WTA players competed in Beijing, she used her time off before returning to the tour to make the trip. Her mother, Rizza, came with her.
Tweed over denim, with mom in Chanel too
Eala wore a black shirt and denim trousers under a tweed jacket. She carried a Chanel flap bag and wore oversized sunglasses. Rizza wore a Chanel tweed look of her own, with black pants and a clutch.
It was Eala’s first runway show in Paris and her first with Chanel. Earlier this year she made her fashion week debut in New York, where she attended shows for Tory Burch, Michael Kors and Calvin Klein.
Her first Chanel show
Eala said she was in awe. It was her first show in Paris and her first with Chanel, and she could not think of a better first show. She described Matthieu Blazy’s collection as intentional, with a lot of purpose in the pieces. In a video interview she called herself a Chanel girl.
Golden birds over the Grand Palais
The show marked one year since Blazy’s debut at Chanel. He sent out 83 looks. Golden birds hung over the runway, along with a large moon and a multicolored glass floor. The set drew on the southern Italian village where Blazy spends vacations.
Blazy said the collection was about Gabrielle Chanel’s layered stories, and that her path ended with her free, like a bird. The show closed with Britney Spears’s “Gimme More.” Alexa Demie also attended, in a hot pink quilted Chanel set with a lacquered finish.
Would she wear it on court?
Eala was asked about Anok Yai’s floor-length black gown, which had puffed shoulders and a sequined overlay. She said she would wear that look on court if given the opportunity.
She was also asked to compare her first Paris runway show with her first time playing at Roland Garros. She picked Roland Garros. Tennis will always be her first love, she said, though fashion has really been growing on her.
