In 2018 Naomi Osaka was ranked as the eighth most popular athlete among female respondents in a survey conducted by Central Research Services in Japan and that was before she won her first major title. Since then her popularity, endorsements and subsequent media spotlight have exploded to the delight of her country.
Osaka has sponsorship deals with the likes of Nissan Motor, Shiseido and Yonex. Furthermore, she is one of the faces of the Olympic Games which will be held in Tokyo later this year. She has achieved many firsts for Japanese tennis, including becoming the only person to have reached No.1 in the world.
Following her decision to withdraw from the French Open due to mental health concerns, many in her Japan have rallied around in support of her.
“The first thing to be considered is Ms. Osaka’s health. I wish her the earliest possible recovery,” Japan Tennis Association (JTA) Executive Director Toshihisa Tsuchihashi said in a statement on Tuesday.
Things started to unfold for the four-time Grand Slam champion last week when she announced that she would not be conducting any press conferences in Paris. At the time she said her decision was so she would not face any questions which could have made her doubt her performance. Osaka’s announcement made headlines worldwide and infuriated some officials. Causing such a stir that even the Grand Slam Board warned her that she faced potentially being defaulted from the tournament if she continued to not fulfil her commitments. She was fined $15,000 for not conducting her press conference after the first round.
However, the depth of Osaka’s woes wasn’t made public until Tuesday when she confirmed her withdrawal. In a second statement she said for the first time she has been suffering from depression since 2018, as well as social anxiety. Going on to say she will be taking a break from the sport.
Ai Sugiyama is a former star of Japanese tennis who won six WTA titles in singles, as well as rising to world No.1 in the doubles during her career. She hopes the Osaka situation will ‘”make a splash and create an opportunity to talk about athlete’s mental health. ” Even more so in Japan where mental health education will be taught in schools from 2022 for the first time in 40 years.
“There’s a big difference between people’s personalities, and I think we need to consider things on a case-by-case basis,” Japan Today quoted Sugiyama as saying.
“I think the system where you absolutely have to turn up and you’re fined if you don’t is a little out-dated.”
In the world of politics, cabinet secretary Katsunobu Kato says he couldn’t imagine the pressure Osaka is currently facing. Sportico previously reported that she made $55M in earnings over a 12-month period which is a new record for a female athlete.
“(Osaka) has said she intends to leave the court for a while, so I would like to keep an eye over her,” asahi.com quoted Kato as telling reporters.
Osaka has made no comment as to when she may return to the Tour.
