Naomi Osaka doesn’t seem fazed by threats from the French Open and other Grand Slams.
After Osaka followed through on her media boycott Sunday after winning her first-round French Open match, the French Open, US Open, Australian Open and Wimbledon announced in a joint statement that the 23-year-old was fined $15,000 and could face harsher discipline for further refusal to speak with the press, including potentially being kicked out of the French Open.
“Anger is a lack of understanding. change makes people uncomfortable,” Osaka wrote on Twitter in response.
Osaka announced on Twitter last Wednesday that she would not be meeting with reporters at the French Open, citing mental health concerns. She said she hopes fines as a result of not fulfilling her obligations would go toward a mental health charity.
Naomi Osaka during her first-round French Open win over Patricia Maria Tig on May 30, 2021. Xinhua News Agency via Getty Images“I’ve often felt that people have no regard for athletes mental health and this rings very true whenever I see a press conference or partake in one,” Osaka wrote at the time. “We’re often sat there and asked questions that we’ve been asked multiple times before or asked questions that bring doubt into our minds and I’m just not going to subject myself to people that doubt me.”
The Grand Slam tournaments said they tried “unsuccessfully” to discuss Osaka’s concerns with her.
