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Naomi osaka said she wants to be known for more than tennis, suggesting that she will continue to campaign for racial justice after winning her third Grand Slam at the US Open Saturday.
Osaka, of Japanese and Haitian descent, wore different masks honoring the victims of systemic racism and police brutality in the United States in each of the seven rounds of the tournament.
The 22-year-old said the thinking time during the coronavirus shutdown, which coincided with protests across the United States over the police murder of black man George Floyd, had led to a political awakening.
“I would definitely say it has been an important few months,” Osaka told reporters after coming back from a set against to beat Victoria Azarenka 1-6, 6-3, 6-3, inside Arthur Ashe Stadium.
“For me, my life was always when it came to tennis, especially after the previous US Open that I won (in 2018). It definitely sped things up and I never had a chance to slow down.
“The quarantine definitely gave me the opportunity to think a lot about things: what I want to achieve, what I want people to remember me. I came to this tournament, or these two tournaments, with that mindset.
Osaka first took an activist stance at the Western & Southern Open, a US Open tuning event, when she threatened not to play her semifinal match in protest of the police shooting of black man Jacob Blake in Wisconsin.
She said she was “sick to her stomach” and “exhausted” from repeated violence against blacks by the US police.
His decision led the WTA and ATP to postpone all semi-final matches for one day, which inspired Osaka to change his mind and be available for the final.
Osaka’s move came after the Milwaukee Bucks led a historic boycott of the shooting, forcing the NBA to halt its playoff schedule and sparking a wave of strikes across multiple sports.
He entered the field for his first game at the US Open wearing a mask bearing the name of Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old emergency medical technician who was killed when police shot her in her own apartment in March.
Osaka then covered her face in honor of Elijah McClain, Ahmaud Arbery, Trayvon Martin, George Floyd, and Philando Castile.
In Saturday’s finale he honored Tamir Rice, a 12-year-old African-American boy who was shot and killed by a white police officer in Cleveland, Ohio in 2014.
He said Saturday that he would like to meet the families of the victims.
“Definitely. I feel that for me I learn more through experiences. For me, I feel that sharing stories and listening to people’s experiences is very valuable,” he said.
Osaka added that her boyfriend, rapper Cordae, who supported her from the stands at the US Open, had influenced her views on racial and social justice.
“I’ve read a lot about the history of Haiti. My dad always talks about it,” Osaka said.
“For me, my boyfriend likes to read a lot, so he has been passing me books.
“I try not to get most of my information from the news. I try to form my own opinion.”
