Fashion backs Naomi Osaka’s French Open withdrawal

"We support her and recognize her courage in sharing her own mental health experience"

Naomi Osaka, the worldโ€™s current No.2 tennis player, made the decision to not speak to the press during this yearโ€™s French Open. In a statement on social media, the 23-year-old wrote, โ€œIโ€™ve often felt that people have no regard for athletesโ€™ mental health and this rings very true whenever I see a press conference or partake in one.โ€

โ€œIโ€™m just not going to subject myself to people who doubt me,โ€ Osaka continued. โ€œ…If the organizations think that they can just keep saying, โ€˜do press or youโ€™re gonna be fined,โ€™ and continue to ignore the mental health of the athletes that are the centrepiece of their cooperation then I just gotta laugh.โ€ Osaka said that she has expressed โ€œlong bouts of depressionโ€ since her historic win against Serena Williams in the 2018 US Open. The athlete has also been open about her personal experiences of race as a Black-Asian woman.

Just days after her initial statement, Osaka was, in fact, fined USD$15,000 by the French Open. Osaka subsequently withdrew from the tournament, in what is being touted by most as a powerful statement of mental health preservation and empowerment. According to a report by WWD, Nike, Tag Heuer and Sweetgreen โ€“ each current collaborators of Osaka โ€“ have now expressed their support for her decision. Osakaโ€™s presence in the public eye skyrocketed in the past few years, with numerous endorsements leading to her position as the worldโ€™s highest-paid female athlete. Osaka has acquired several partnerships with the likes of Louis Vuitton, Leviโ€™s, Comme des Garรงons, and Frankies Bikinis.

In respective statements, Nike and Tag Heuer both said that their thoughts are with Osaka at this time. Nike said that they โ€œrecognize her courage in sharing her own mental health experienceโ€, while Tag Heuer conveyed that Osaka โ€œwill come out of this period stronger, be it professionally or personally.โ€ Sweetgreen, an American healthy eatery, said in a tweet, โ€œOur partnership with [Naomi] is rooted in wellness in all its forms. We support her in furthering the conversation around mental health and are proud to have her part of the sweetgreen team.โ€

Her decision to withdraw caused ripples through the sports world, with conversations going beyond Osakaโ€™s display of strength. Her statement has led to the beginnings of a much larger, and long overdue, conversation around the negligence towards mental health for athletes who exist in the public realm. Osakaโ€™s words and ownership of her mental wellbeing is a lesson: in prioritising oneself, despite the costs, in speaking up, despite possible backlash. Her decision is emblematic of the fraught relationship between public heroes and the press, likely to be a push for change in this realm.

First published on Buro247.com

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