Who Are Naomi Osaka’s Parents?

Naomi Osaka made headlines after her recent victories at the US Open 2020 and at the Australian Open 2021. The Japanese star defeated almost all the WTA superstars and made some incredible comebacks to win these Majors. With her recent win in Melbourne, she also rose to the 2nd spot in the WTA rankings.

Naomi Osaka has earned so much glory at the young age of 23. She has 4 Grand Slams at the moment and the credit for the same definitely goes to her parents, Tamaki Osaka and Leonard François.

They met in Japan when Tamaki was in high school while Leonard was in college. At first they dated secretly, got married, and moved to New York City from Japan when Osaka was just 3 years old. Osaka and her sister both got their last name after her mother.

Naomi Osaka’s father drew inspiration from the Williams sisters and was her initial coach

Naomi Osaka’s father took inspiration from Serena Williams and Venus Williams. He decided to teach their daughters Naomi and Mari tennis after watching them play at the French Open 1999.

Leonard Francois took admiration from Richard Williams, the father of Williams’ sisters, and trained his daughters despite never having played the sport.

He began coaching both his daughters when they moved to the States. He even moved to Florida with his family in order to give better opportunities to both Mari and Naomi.

The parents also made a tough choice and mutually agreed that both their daughters would represent Japan in tennis. They believe since both of them were brought up in Japanese and Haitian culture, there was no point playing for the United States.

Mari Osaka- The sister of Naomi Osaka

Naomi Osaka has an elder sister in Mari Osaka, who is also a professional tennis player. She made her WTA tour debut recently at the Miami Open 2019.

Osaka has claimed on many occasions that both the sisters used to replicate the Williams sisters when they were young. She has also said that she owes a lot to her sister.

Thus, it is amazing that Naomi Osaka has quite a supportive family. She also complements them as she continues to shine on the court time and again. Will Osaka be able to rise to the No.1 spot in rankings by the end of the 2021 tennis season?

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