Naomi Osaka Rightfully Puts Daughter Shai Above Paris Olympics as She Admits Confusion Over Their Journey

Naomi Osaka returns to Wimbledon after 4 years! While her mind is currently focused on the grass courts, she already has a list of people who will accompany her to Roland Garros. Since her daughter Shai came into her life, she became a priority member of Osaka’s entourage. Osaka is planning her schedule around Shai, as the soon-to-be 1-year-old accompanies her mother around the world.

During a pre-tournament press conference at Wimbledon, Osaka revealed that she plans to bring a small team with her to Paris. When asked about her preparations and who will be joining her, she said, “Yeah, I honestly, I’m so focused on this tournament now I wasn’t thinking about the Olympics, but, um, honestly, I probably will bring a small team with me to the Olympics when I get there.”

Along with confirming the entry of her team, she remained dicey about her daughter Shai’s travels. “I don’t know. Shai travels quite a lot, so I don’t want to, like, keep flying her back and forth and messing with her time zones,” she added, concerned about her kid’s well-being.

Naomi Osaka is all set to represent Japan at her second appearance at the Summer Olympics. She will compete in the singles tournament alongside Kei Nishikori and Moyuka Uchijima. Looking at her previous appearances, the Japanese participated in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where she also had the honor of lighting the cauldron at the opening ceremony.

A crucial part of Osaka’s regular life now revolves around her daughter, Shai. Born in July 2023, Shai was the reason why the 26-year-old had to keep herself out of the scene. The WTA star has marked several moments of expressing how much she misses Shai when they’re apart.

“It’s definitely been really hard,” she admitted, stating the difficulties of missing out on the adorable moments of seeing her grow. Along with that, Osaka also presented an urge to consistently be around the little one. “I’m definitely sad, but I feel like it’s a selfish sad because I want her to be here. But I think for her health and like her whole environment is at home—you know what I mean? I don’t want to put her out of that while she’s still so young,” she added.

Naomi Osaka is a motivation for many. Balancing her career along with her personal life, she sets the perfect example of a possibility that scares many. However, despite being away from her during her travels, Osaka has ways to be connected with Shai.

Naomi Osaka reveals how she doesn’t “feel like I’m missing” Shai a lot

Ever since the 2024 season started, Naomi Osaka has been actively competing on the WTA Tour. Although Shai comes along with her in some of the locations, both the mother and daughter have to miss each other for the rest of them. However, the smart Japanese WTA star seems to have figured out a way to catch up with Shai, even when she stays away.

“I FaceTime her a lot. I get a lot of videos. She knows how to, like, kiss the phone. If I FaceTime her and I go (kissing sounds into the phone), then she’ll kiss the phone back. I don’t know, it’s really cute. I don’t feel like I’m missing too much ’cause I’m getting so many updates, yeah,” Osaka said in a recent interview, revealing how she has found new ways to be around for her daughter’s growth.

It is time for Naomi Osaka to be prepared for her upcoming showdown at Wimbledon as her daughter cheers for her from the stands. While everyone is impressed by the levels she presented against Iga Swiatek at Roland Garros, they all wish for more!