Naomi Osaka: Tennis champion withdraws from French Open
May 31, 2021
The four-time Grand Slam champion has pulled out of the tennis tournament citing mental health issues. Organizers had threatened to disqualify her for not attending press conferences.
Naomi Osaka has decided to withdraw from the French Open due to mental health issuesImage: Sydney Low/Zumawire/imago images
Advertisement
The tennis star Naomi Osaka announced over Twitter on Monday that she was pulling out of the French Open tournament in Paris, after being fined for not appearing in a postmatch news conference.
The four-time Grand Slam champion said in her statement on Twitter that she was withdrawing so that "everyone can get back to focusing on the tennis going on in Paris."
She also said that she had "suffered long bouts of depression" and that she gets "huge waves of anxiety" before speaking to the press.
Why was Osaka fined?
The 23-year-old, who is ranked second in the world, was fined $15,000 (€12,270) on Sunday after her first-round victory in the tournament because she refused to take part in the press conference after the match.
Advertisement
All four Grand Slam tournaments threatened further punishment, including disqualification or suspension after she said she was not planning on talking to the press during the tournament.
In her statement, Osaka said that she had been feeling "vulnerable and anxious" before the start of the championship and thought it better "to exercise self-care and skip the press conferences."
The Japanese born player who now resides in the US won her four Grand Slam championships on hard courts, but has never gone past the third round playing on the French Open's red clay.
She questioned the need for the postmatch meets with the press, saying "I do feel like the rules are quite outdated in parts and I wanted to highlight that."
Superwomen of sport
For decades, women have fought for gender equality in sports - and there's still a long way to go. Several high-profile female athletes have shaken up the establishment, but they've not always enjoyed lasting success.
Image: Tim Goode/empics/picture alliance
Victory in the Grand National
On April 10, 2021, Rachael Blackmore broke down one of the biggest gender barriers in sports by becoming the first female jockey to win England's grueling Grand National. Blackmore, a 31-year-old Irishwoman, rode Minella Times to victory at Aintree in the 173rd edition of the steeplechase run. "I don't feel male or female right now. I don't even feel human," she said. "This is just unbelievable."
Image: Tim Goode/empics/picture alliance
King's challenge
In the early 1970s, Billie Jean King fought for equal prize money for male and female tennis players. In protest, the 12-time Grand Slam winner, along with other female players, set up their own tournaments which later became the Women's Tennis Association (WTA). In 1973, their efforts paid off as the US Open awarded equal prize money for the first time.
Image: Imago Images/Sven Simon
Against all odds
Despite the best efforts of the furious race director (in jacket and hat) to rip away her start number, Kathrine Switzer became the first woman to compete in and successfully finish the Boston Marathon. With women only permitted to compete up to 800 meters, she had to register secretly. A few years later, women were officially allowed to compete in long-distance events.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/UPI
First Down!
Sarah Thomas became the first woman to be part of the officiating team at the Super Bowl in 2021. In making her way up the ladder, she's had to overcome several prejudices but says she's now accepted. "Colleagues, coaches and players now simply see me as an official. That's how I want it to be," she said. "I have never allowed my gender to be an excuse or a pretext for people."
Image: Aaron Josefczyk/Newscom/picture alliance
Crowd favorite
The Italian cyclist Alfonsina Strada registered for the 1924 Giro d'Italia under the name of Alfonsin Strada - tricking the organizers into believing she was a man. When they discovered the truth, Strada was still allowed to start, becoming the only ever woman to have started a men's race. She was disqualified after exceeding a time limit but despite being officially out, she still finished.
Image: Imago Images/Leemage
The sky's the limit
Until the early 1990s, women were not permitted to take part in ski jumping, but Eva Ganster became the first female "pre-jumper" in 1994. In 1997, the Austrian became the first woman to jump from a ski flying hill, as the women's sport continued to develop. The first World Cup took place in 2011, the first Olympic event in 2014. Ganster's wish is for there to be a Four Hills Tournament one day.
Image: Imago Images/WEREK
Between the pipes
Manon Rheaume made history in 1992 by becoming the first woman to try out for a team in the National Hockey League. She played one period of a preseason game for the Tampa Bay Lightning against the St. Louis Blues. Later that same year she became the first woman to play in a regular season professional game, when she took the ice for the Atlanta Knights against the Salt Lake Golden Eagles.
Image: Getty Images/S. Halleran
The woman in charge
In 1993, Switzerland's Nicole Petignat became the first woman to referee a men's Champions League football match - a UEFA Cup qualifier between AIK of Sweden and Fylkir of Iceland. She also refereed in the Swiss league as well as women's World Cup and European Championship finals. Despite her achievements, female referees remain a rarity. Germany's Bibiana Steinhaus was a prominent exception.
Image: picture-alliance/Pressefoto ULMER
Women drivers
Italy's Maria Teresa de Filippis was the first of only two women to have ever driven in Formula One. Between 1958 and 1959, she competed in three Grands Prix. Her compatriot Lella Lombardi followed her lead, featuring in 12 races between 1974 and 1976, but no woman has since sat in the cockpit in elite motorsport.
Image: picture-alliance/empics
Bull's-eye!
On December 17, 2019 Fallon Sherrock made history by beating Ted Evetts in the first round of the 2020 World Championship at Alexandra Palace in London. This made her the first woman to beat a male opponent at the PDC World Championship. To prove it was no fluke, she went on to beat Mensur Suljovic in the second round before losing to Chris Dobey in the third.
Image: Getty Images/J. Mansfield
Making women better
German football coach Monika Staab is a true pioneer. For years Staab has been traveling the world organizing training programs for women and girls. Staab is of the view that "positive feedback in sports boosts self-confidence. You need this to go through life."
Image: FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP
Making men better
On August 4, 2014, Corinne Diacre became the first woman to coach a game in the top two tiers of a European men's league, when second-division Clermont Foot lost 2-1 at Brest. She spent three years at Clermont before taking over as manager of the French women's national team in 2017. Diacre remains the rare exception in men's football, and even now, many women's teams are coached by men.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
12 images1 | 12
How did the tennis world react?
Gilles Moretton, president of the Roland Garros — the official name for the French Open — published a statement expressing his sadness at the withdrawal.
"First and foremost we are sorry and sad for Naomi Osaka. The outcome of Naomi withdrawing from Roland Garros is unfortunate,'' he said.
"We wish her the best and the quickest possible recovery. And we look forward to having Naomi in our tournament next year.''
Tennis champion Serena Williams, who has won 23 Gland Slam titles, voiced support for Osaka.
"The only thing I feel is that I feel for Naomi. I feel like I wish I could give her a hug because I know what it's like," Williams said following her first-round win at the French Open.
"Everyone is different and everyone handles things differently. You just have to let her handle it the way she wants to," she added.
Tennis great and 18-time Grand Slam champion Martina Navratilova also expressed her remorse that Osaka had pulled out of the competition.
"I am so sad about Naomi Osaka. I truly hope she will be okay," she said.
"As athletes we are taught to take care of our body, and perhaps the mental and emotional aspect gets short shrift," Navratilova added.
Rafael Nadal, 13-time French Open winner said that he respected Osaka's right to take a stance against the postmatch press conferences, but added that he considers talking to the press as part of the job.
