There was little surprise when Osaka was revealed as the face of an early Tokyo 2020 commercial last February and it is obviously significant. The most prominent Japanese athlete in the world is mixed race and offers significant representation for a growing population of multicultural Japanese pe...
Despite how easily she represents both her Haitian and Japanese heritage, so often ignorance and confusion has reflected back from all areas. Some American commentators claim she does not represent Haiti enough. After her outspoken support for Black Lives Matter, Osaka received more than a few ...
Her frustration was more than understandable. Considering the way Osaka speaks about her heritage, there has been no choice to make for a long time. She was born in Japan. She is Japanese as well as Haitian. She made the choice to represent Japan when she was 14 and she has never wavered. But thr...
Despite recent discourse, Osaka rarely exhibits her frustration in front of the media. This time, however, it was clear: “I made comments about it already so if you want to read those comments …” she responded curtly. “I’m kind of over repeating myself all the time, so … I mean, I’m...
The decision, which received prominent attention, was widely framed as a difficult choice between being American or Japanese, speculation that soon reached her in a press conference at the Miami Open.
Back in the spring of 2019, Naomi Osaka was coming off consecutive grand slam titles and digesting her newfound presence as a leading name in world sport when the subject shifted to the seemingly imminent 2020 Olympics. In order to represent Japan there, the then-21-year-old Osaka would have to a...
The face of Tokyo 2020 has had a turbulent year so far but has a habit of dropping into big events and producing her best
“Last summer, 1.3m children had access to food support, through my relationship with Burberry children have a safe place to be after school where they will be fed, following the November investment vulnerable children have safe places to go this summer holiday, and due to my relationship with M...
The footballer posted a thread on Twitter saying: “Just heard spectator are planning to run a story on me tomorrow about how I have benefited commercially in the last 18 months. To clarify, I don’t need to partner with brands. I partner because I want to progress the work I do off the pitch a...
Rashford has backed a number of child food poverty incentives and became the youngest person to top the Sunday Times Giving List by raising £20m in donations from supermarkets for groups tackling the issue. The England player has also forced a series of government U-turns over free school meal...
The Manchester United forward said on Twitter that the political magazine the Spectator was set to run a story suggesting he has “benefited commercially” from his campaigning.
Marcus Rashford has defended his off-field partnerships and questioned why footballers “can’t just do the right thing” for charity.
Foreigners have been required to provide proof of negative virus tests within 72 hours of departure for Tokyo and are being tested throughout their stay. Travelers have spent hours waiting for paperwork approval at airports, and visitors have been mostly barred from interacting with the Japanese ...
The roughly 22,000 athletes, officials, coaches and media that have traveled to Japan for the Games are living under strict restrictions to prevent a surge in infections among the country’s general population. Japanese authorities said Monday that 21.6% of the nation’s 126 million population ...
“I’m deeply saddened by this and wish to apologize for my poor judgment and my choice to share this message. I am also sorry that this may have been a distraction for the delegation which should be focused on supporting our athletes to the best of our ability.”