After citing anxiety over media interview's $15k fine, Naomi Osaka withdraws from French Open
Naomi Osaka said she was withdrawing from the French Open on Monday, one day after tennis officials threatened to suspend her and fined her $15,000 over her decision not to do media interviews during the tournament to prioritize her mental health. In a statement on Monday, Osaka also said that she "suffered long bouts of depression" since being catapulted into the national spotlight after a controversial victory over Serena Williams in the U.S. Open of 2018.
"The best thing for the tournament, the other players, and my well-being is that I withdraw so that everyone can get back to focusing on the tennis going on in Paris," she said in a statement. "I never wanted to be a distraction and accept that my timing was not ideal and my message could have been clearer." I would never trivialize mental health or use the term lightly," she added. "The truth is that I have suffered long bouts of depression since the U.S. Open in 2018, and I have had a tough time coping with that."
"Anyone that knows me I'm introverted," she said, "and anyone that has seen me at the tournaments will notice that I'm often wearing headphones as that helps dull my social anxiety."Gilles Moreton, president of the French Tennis Federation, said in a statement Monday that the organization was “sorry and sad for Naomi Osaka," and he called the outcome "unfortunate."We wish her the best and the quickest possible recovery," Moreton said. "And we look forward to having Naomi in our tournament next year.”
The four Grand Slam tournaments, as well as the tennis tours, Moreton said, "remain very committed to all athletes’ well-being and to continually improving every aspect of players’ experience in our Tournament, including with the Media, as we have always strived to do."Last Wednesday, Osaka, 23, announced her decision to skip news conferences at the French Open, noting that the repeated questions, particularly after losses, sowed feelings of doubt."If the organizations think that they can keep saying, 'Do the press or you're going to be fined', and continue to ignore the mental health of the athletes that are the centrepiece of their corporation, then I just got to laugh," she said.
Officials at the French tournament asked, "her to reconsider her position and tried unsuccessfully to speak with her to check on her well-being". Still, they were unable to engage with Osaka, according to a statement Sunday from the U.S. Tennis Association, the French Tennis Federation, the All England Lawn Tennis Club and Tennis Australia. The four organizations said that they have dedicated "significant" resources to players' well-being but that "to continue to improve; however, we need engagement from the players to understand their perspective and find ways to improve their experiences."
The tennis officials said that if Osaka continued to ignore her media "obligations," she could be at risk of default from the tournament and suspension from other competitions. In her statement on Monday, Osaka, ranked No. 2 in the world, said she was “not a natural public speaker” and is often overwhelmed with “huge waves of anxiety” before speaking to the media.
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