Naomi Osaka’s decision to protect her mental health is well documented. Osaka, , opened up about her recent experiences and called for change to protect the mental health of all athletes.
“In the past few weeks, my journey took an unexpected path but one that has taught me so much and helped me grow,” wrote Osaka.
This past May, Osaka announced that she would not do any press around the French Open in order to protect her mental health. So after she defeated Romania’s Patricia Maria Țig, 6-4,7-6 in the first round, she skipped the post-match press conference.
While most fans cheered her decision, Roland-Garros officials lashed out.
They fined her $15,000 and issued a statement which in part read:
“We have advised Naomi Osaka that should she continue to ignore her media obligations during the tournament, she would be exposing herself to possible further Code of Conduct infringement consequences.“
Instead of bowing to the pressure, Osaka tweeted that she was withdrawing from the tournament.
In that tweet, she also revealed that she suffered from bouts of depression since the US Open in 2018. So mental health has always been a concern for Osaka.
Some defended her decision. Others attacked her.
But Osaka remained unbothered. She pulled out of Wimbledon and prepared for the Olympics in Tokyo.
Today we learned more about what she experienced over these last three months.
She first discussed learning two key lessons. One, you can’t please everyone.
“The world is as divided now as I can remember in my short 23 years,” wrote Osaka.
Two, mental health affects everyone, and everyone is connected to the issue in some way.
“It has become apparent to me that literally everyone either suffers from issues related to their mental health or knows someone who does.”
She also cleared the air surrounding criticisms of her perceived disrespect of the press.
“This was never about the press, but rather the traditional format of the press conference.” wrote Osaka. “I’ll say it again for those at the back: I love the press; I do not love all press conferences.”
Naomi simply called for changes to the press conference format to make things better for everyone involved.
“I believe that we can make it better, more interesting and more enjoyable for each side. Less subject vs. object; more peer to peer.”
But Naomi Osaka’s real purpose is to help the overall mental health of all athletes. The pressures of training and competition are strenuous enough, so providing distance and having some understanding of what athletes experience needs to be instilled.
“Perhaps we should give athletes the right to take a mental break from media scrutiny on a rare occasion without being subject to strict sanctions.
“In any other line of work, you would be forgiven for taking a personal day here and there, so long as it’s not habitual,” penned Osaka. “You wouldn’t have to divulge your most personal symptoms to your employer; there would likely be HR measures protecting at least some level of privacy.”
She gracefully acknowledged all of those who supported her during this stressful period and is ready to put on a show for her hometown fans in Tokyo. But she understands the importance of her stance and calls for change.
“Michael Phelps told me that by speaking up I may have saved a life. If that’s true, then it was all worth it.”
It definitely was Naomi.
