Naomi Osaka keeps it brutally honest opening up about her mixed heritage with Japanese & Haitian roots

Naomi Osaka recently opened up about being perceived as ‘different’ because of her Japanese and Haitian roots. The former World No. 1 and four-time Major champion also urged other people with mixed heritage to see themselves in positive light even if the rest of society doesn’t.

Osaka’s father, Leonard Francois, is Haitian by birth, and he met her mother Tamaki in Japan. The two eventually became parents to daughters Mari and Naomi, and in a few years, moved to New York before subsequently settling in Florida. This led to the daughters growing up and getting familiar with the American way of life as well, which further enriched their Japanese and Haitian roots.

Speaking in a recent interview with Hypebeast, Naomi Osaka touched on her background and remembered how it has always made her stand out. The 28-year-old said:

“For me, with my background being Japanese and Haitian and American, I’ve just always been considered different. And growing up, playing with the Japanese flag, but not looking fully Japanese, it just made me aware of being a little different from everyone else. I was always kind of OK with it and I realized that for some people, it’s tough to accept that.”

Going on to encourage fellow ‘black sheep’ to be proud of being different, Osaka added:

“I realized there are always a few black sheep in the bunch and just hope that they know that it’s cool to be different and unique. Those are things that make you, you and it’s something that should be embraced rather than something that should be shamed.”

Naomi Osaka reveals how she would feel if she inspired ‘someone who looks like her’ to pursue a career in professional tennis

In the same interview, Naomi Osaka also talked about her ‘love-hate relationship’ with tennis. At the same time, the Japanese WTA icon also expressed her gratitude to the sport, and she touched on what it would mean for her if she serves as the inspiration to pursue tennis for young people with mixed roots. The current World No. 16 said:

“I had a love-hate relationship with the sport just because I feel like I’ve been through so much in such a short amount of time. I’m also very grateful for everything that the sport has provided me. If somehow I inspired someone that looked like me to play this sport, that’s one of the greatest things that could occur. And that would also make me want to continue doing things with the sport after my career finishes.”

Osaka hasn’t featured in competitive action since her withdrawal from the 2026 Australian Open ahead of her third-round outing against Maddison Inglis. The Japanese sustained a left abdominal injury and missed the WTA’s Middle East Swing as well.