Naomi Osaka withdraws from French Open, citing her psychological well being
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Posted On June 1, 2021
The four-time main winner posted a press release on Twitter saying she was pulling out in order that “everybody can get again to specializing in the tennis occurring in Paris,” including that she would “take a while away from the court docket.”
Osaka revealed she had “suffered lengthy bouts of melancholy” since profitable her first Grand Slam title in 2018.
Following her straight-set victory on Sunday, Osaka was fined $15,000 for not speaking to the media, Roland Garros introduced in a press release.
“I feel now the most effective factor for the event, the opposite gamers and my well-being is that I withdraw so that everybody can get again to specializing in the tennis occurring in Paris.
“I by no means wished to be a distraction and I settle for that my timing was not ultimate and my message may have been clearer. Extra importantly I might by no means trivialize psychological well-being or use the time period frivolously.
“The reality is that I’ve suffered lengthy bouts of melancholy because of the US Open in 2018 and I’ve had an extremely exhausting time dealing with that.
“Anybody that is aware of me is aware of I am introverted, and anybody that has seen me on the tournaments will discover that I am usually sporting headphones as that helps uninteresting my social anxiousness.
“Although the tennis press has at all times been the sort to me (and I wanna apologize particularly to all of the cool journalists who I could have damage), I’m not a pure public speaker and get big waves of tension earlier than I converse to the world’s media.
“I get actually nervous and discover it aggravating to at all times attempt to interact and provide the finest solutions I can. So right here in Paris, I used to be already feeling weak and anxious so I assumed it was higher to train self-care and skip the press conferences.
“I introduced it preemptively as a result of I do really feel like the foundations are fairly outdated in elements and I wished to focus on that. I wrote privately to the event apologizing and saying that I might be more than pleased to talk with them after the event because the Slams are intense.
“I am gonna take a while away from the court docket now, however when the time is true I actually wish to work with the Tour to debate methods we are able to make issues higher for the gamers, press, and followers.”
Following her determination to decide out of media duties final week, the French Open was criticized for posting a tweet — which it has since deleted — with photographs of Rafael Nadal, Kei Nishikori, Aryna Sabalenka, and Coco Gauff participating in media duties with the caption: “They understood the project.”
4-time grand slam doubles winner Rennae Stubbs tweeted: “That is some severe shade from Roland Garros & the FFT (French Tennis Federation).
“I perceive your try at making some extent however this does not look. I imply these explicit gamers are an excellent search for tennis however making a participant really feel responsible & humiliating her is NOT search for tennis fed.”
Gilles Moreton, French Tennis Federation president, stated in a press release the FFT was “sorry and unhappy for Naomi Osaka.”
“The end result of Naomi withdrawing from Roland-Garros is unlucky. We want her the most effective and quickest attainable restoration, and we stay up for having Naomi at our Match subsequent yr,” Moreton’s assertion learn. “As all of the Grand Slams, the WTA, the ATP and the ITF, we stay very dedicated to all athletes’ wellbeing and to repeatedly bettering each facet of gamers’ expertise in our Match, together with with the Media, like now we have at all times strived to do.”
Tennis nice Martina Navratilova tweeted Monday about Osaka’s determination.
“I really hope she will likely be okay,” Navratilova tweeted. “As athletes, we’re taught to handle our physique, and maybe the psychological & emotional facet will get brief shrift. That is about greater than doing or not doing a press convention.”
After her victory over Romania’s Patricia Maria Tig in straight units on Sunday, the 23-year-old Osaka didn’t converse to the media, a motion she was fined for.
Roland Garros stated it requested Osaka “to rethink her place and tried unsuccessfully to talk along with her to test on her well-being, perceive the specifics of her subject and what is perhaps performed to deal with it on website.”
“Following the dearth of engagement by Naomi Osaka, the Australian Open, Roland-Garros, Wimbledon and the US Open collectively wrote to her to test on her well-being and supply help, underline their dedication to all athletes’ well-being and recommend dialog on the difficulty,” the assertion learn. “She was additionally reminded of her obligations, the implications of not assembly them, and that guidelines ought to equally apply to all gamers.”
Organizers stated that repeated violations may result in harder sanctions together with default from the event.
The WTA tour launched a press release saying psychological well-being and the attention across the topic are one of many “highest priorities for the WTA.”
“We stay right here to help and help Naomi in any method attainable and we hope to see her again on the court docket quickly,” WTA’s assertion learns.
