Naomi Osaka drops out of French Open after refusing to speak to media
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Naomi Osaka has won four major tennis tournaments called Grand Slams during her career so far
Tennis star Naomi Osaka has dropped out of the French Open over her refusal to speak to the media at the tournament.
The 23-year-old said last week she would not do news conferences at the tournament to protect her mental health. The French Open is one of the four major Grand Slams events, the biggest in tennis.
"I never wanted to be a distraction," the world number two player said in a tweet announcing her withdrawal.
Japan's Osaka also said that she had "suffered long bouts of depression" since winning her first Grand Slam title in 2018.
What's been happening with Naomi Osaka?
Naomi is the highest-paid female athlete in the world
Grand Slam rules state players can be fined up to $20,000 (£14,160) for not completing their media responsibilities.
The Women's Tennis Association (WTA), which runs women's professional tennis, says players "have a responsibility to their sport and their fans" to speak to the media during competitions.
Following her win over Romania's Patricia Maria Tig on Sunday, Osaka did not take part in the usual media conference after the match and was fined $15,000 (£10,570).
Later that day, organisers of the four Grand Slams - Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open - released a joint statement saying Osaka could face "more substantial fines and future Grand Slam suspensions" for her decision.
Osaka did not speak to the media after her win on Sunday
After a "lack of engagement" from Osaka, the Grand Slam organisers wrote to her to offer support, as well as to "remind her of her obligations".
In response, the four-time major winner tweeted: "Anger is a lack of understanding. Change makes people uncomfortable".
On Monday, Osaka announced her decision to withdraw from the tournament altogether, saying she was going to "take some time away from the court now".
"When the time is right I really want to work with the Tour to discuss ways we can make things better for the players, press and fans," she added.
Though the tennis press has always been kind to me (and I want to apologise to all the cool journalists who I may have hurt), I am not a natural public speaker and get huge waves of anxiety before I speak to the world's media. I get really nervous and find it stressful to always try to engage and give you the best answers I can. So here in Paris I was already feeling vulnerable and anxious, so I thought it was better to exercise self-care and skip the press conferences. I announced it pre-emptively because I do feel like the rules are quite outdated in parts and I wanted to highlight that.
The French Tennis Federation, which is in charge of the French Open, said the withdrawal of the Osaka was "unfortunate" and "we are sorry and sad for Naomi".
"We wish her the best and quickest possible recovery, and we look forward to having Naomi at our tournament next year," he added.
"We remain very committed to all athletes' wellbeing and to continually improving every aspect of players' experience in our tournament, including with the media, like we have always strived to do."
Sport stars support Osaka
Atheletes including Serena Williams have come out in support of Naomi Osaka
Many athletes, both in and out of tennis, supported Osaka's decision, although many said speaking to the media is "part of the job".
After Naomi's decision to drop out of the tournament yesterday, US tennis legend Serena Williams said: "I've been in those positions. We have different personalities and people are different. Not everyone is the same."
American tennis star Coco Gauff tweeted: "Stay strong. I admire your vulnerability."
The only thing I feel is that I feel for Naomi. I feel like I wish I could give her a hug because I know what it's like.
British athletics champion Katarina Johnson-Thompson also backed Osaka: "She's so brave to speak out and protect her well-being. Mental health, especially in sport, is such a risky topic to be open about."
"Hopefully change will come off the back of her withdrawal and it will open up conversations around depression in sport to break down the stigma," she added.
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