Who Are Naomi Osaka’s Parents? Here Is Everything We Know About Them

Naomi Osaka is a Japanese professional tennis player who at one point attained the highest ranking of number one in women’s singles. 

More often, it is a child who benefits from their parents’ stardom; but sometimes, it is just the opposite. There is not a single parent who is not thrilled about their children’s achievements.

The same is the case with Naomi Osaka’s parents. They are proud of their daughter’s accomplishments. 

Naomi Osaka is not a new name in the world of sports. This 26 years old professional tennis player stunned the world when she defeated the 23-time Grand Slam singles champion, Serena Williams.

Moreover, it also made her the first Japanese to hold the title. But with the accolades, many have been questioning her origins. 

So, today let’s talk more about the people who encouraged Naomi to pursue her passion.

And, of course, we will go in-depth regarding her parents’ interracial marriage, the hardships that came along the way, and her 2023 pregnancy announcement. 

Let’s look at her quick facts!

Quick Facts 

Naomi Osaka’s Parents: Leonard Francois and Tamaki Osaka

Currently, number 65 (January 30, 2023) in the World Women’s Tennis ranking, Naomi Osaka represents Japan and is the daughter of her parents, Leonard Maxime Francois and Tamaki Osaka.

Even from the name alone, we can clearly see the two are from different communities. True to that, Naomi’s mother was born in Nemuro, Japan, while her father is from Haiti.

Likewise, Tamaki was raised in a part of Japan where racial purity was strictly upheld. Nemuro, the coastal town, remained faithful to Tokugawa’s decree and maintained a racially pure Japan.

Without a doubt, Tamaki was raised in such an environment and grew up with those principles set from generations ago. However, all of that changed for once after she went to high school in Sapporo, Hokkaido’s capital.

Meanwhile, Naomi’s father, Leonard, was born in Jacmel, Haiti, and studied in New York, the United States of America. Contrary to her mother, there is little information on her father’s side.

Tamaki’s Parents Were Not Happy With Her Relationship With Leonard

As mentioned above, Naomi’s mother, Tamaki, grew up in a strict environment but changed her perception once she entered high school.

It broadened her perspectives regarding the race and the principle she had endeared her whole life.

Coincidentally, the two met for the first time in Sapporo, Japan. Naomi’s father, Leonard, was among the first wave of foreigners visiting Japan.

Not to mention, Leonard further helped Tamaki clear the doubts she had against races.

However, living in a country where racism was still prevalent in some parts, dating a foreigner, a black man at that, was not easy. Her parents struggled even before they tied the knot.

Despite all that, Tamaki and Leonard dated each other for a while, hiding the fact from her parents. But soon, she had to reveal the relationship when her family talked about arranged marriage.

And as expected, Tamaki’s parents, especially her father, were not ecstatic over the news. He was enraged about the fact that her dating a black foreigner. She was even blamed for tarnishing their family name.

Even after the commotion, the two stuck together and moved to Osaka. Tamaki and her parents remained estranged for more than ten years.

Naomi Osaka Was Born In Osaka, Japan

Now, Naomi Osaka is an athlete that the whole world knows about. The humble and kind-hearted girl was born on October 16, 1997, in Chuo-ku, Osaka, Japan.

She was raised by her Japanese mother and Haitian father with her sister, Mari Osaka, who is just 18 months older than her.

Why Does Naomi Osaka Not Use Her Father’s Name?

Due to the Japanese Family Registration Law (Koseki), the two sisters were given their mother’s maiden name.

While growing up, Osaka’s parents struggled with many things, including money. Luckily, those struggles and times are the reasons why Naomi is humble and lives a moderate life.

“When I was younger, I used to want a lot of expensive stuff, but now I’m just happy if I have basic things.”

Likewise, Naomi held Japan’s and America’s citizenship but gave up the latter to represent Japan in the 2020 Olympic Games. 

Naomi Osaka’s Father Taught Her And Mari To Play Tennis

After spending their early married life in Japan, Naomi Osaka’s parents moved to Valley Stream, New York, on Long Island. At that time, Osaka was just three years old.

Naomi started practicing tennis at an early age when inspiration struck her father after watching the Williams sisters compete at the 1999 French Open.

With little knowledge, Leonard observed how Richard Williams trained his daughters to become the world’s best players.

Not to mention, Leonard followed Richard’s blueprint, the tactics used to train Serena William and Venus Willam to become virtually unbeatable.

For the sake of her tennis career and better opportunities, Naomi’s parents again moved to Florida in 2006.

She started practicing on the Pembroke Pine public courts and later began working with Patrick Tauma at the ISP Academy once she turned 15.

However, training them was not easy for Leonard. Him being their daughter’s coach meant Tamaki, Naomi’s mother, had to handle the finance.

“My mum sacrificed a lot, we would go to tournaments, and she would stay at home and work because someone had to pay for the flights and stuff. I’m very grateful for everything she’s done, and I can only hope that what I’m doing now can repay her in some way.”

Naomi has often mentioned how her mother would get up at 4 am and help her get the necessary funds for her tennis career. Because of their contributions and hardships, the young star now wants to give everything to her parents.

Sister Mari Osaka

Inspired by the Williams sisters, Naomi’s father also worked hard to make his daughters the best duo in the tennis world. However, with multiple injuries and resetting, Mari has somewhat fallen short of that.

However, it was not the same when they were younger. The two sisters, especially Naomi, were very competitive and practiced hard to beat her older sister. Time and again, Mari took tennis better than her and would emerge victorious on the court.

Talking about her time with Mari, Naomi told the New York Times, “I don’t remember liking to hit the ball. The main thing was that I wanted to beat my sister. For her, it wasn’t a competition. Every day I’d say, “I’m going to beat you tomorrow.”

As promised, after 12 long years, Naomi finally beat her sister, fair and square, on the court.

With a career record of 196–162 and $90,891 prize money, Mari announced her retirement on March 9, 2021. 

Why do Naomi And Mari Represent Japan Instead Of The USA?

After the championship, many questions regarding Osaka and her origin emerged like wildfire. One of the significant issues was her representing Japan in international tournaments.

This situation is not something that popped out of the blue but instead had been cultivating in the minds of Naomi’s parents. Since her early tennis days, Leonard and Tamaki decided that Naomi and Mari would represent Japan.

Simply put, the girls are more connected to Japan than their father’s home country, the United States. Since the two were born in Japan, many of their relatives and friends are from there too.

And more importantly, Tamaki and her parents have rekindled their relationship about a decade ago. When Naomi was 11, her parents took both sisters to meet their grandparents in Japan.

As expected, Naomi’s grandparents accepted the family but remarked tennis was more of a hobby than a profession. Nonetheless, the girls continued in their pursuit of becoming the best.

Lack Of Support

Another major factor that helped set the decision was the lack of support from the American side. Early on, the Tennis Association in the USA refused to help with Osaka’s sister and their development.

Since the two girls didn’t have impressive rankings and failed to participate in tournaments, the association saw it as a waste to involve them. Little did they know, one would be the World Champion decade later.

After the setback, her parents decided then and there that the two would represent Japan. Talking about it to the New York Times, the 26 years old tennis player said,

“My dad thought that since I grew up around my mom and I have a lot of Japanese relatives… I don’t know… I don’t necessarily feel like I’m American. And I wouldn’t know what that feels like.”

Naomi made the headline after giving up her American citizenship to play for Japan in the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics.

“I am Black and Asian”- Naomi Osaka

When talking about Naomi, questions regarding her ethnicity always creep up. The champion is often asked to explain her ethnic background to people.

Unfortunately for them, Naomi is bold and proud when talking about her roots. “I am Black and Asian,” said Osaka when one fan asked her about her ethnicity. Also, her nationality is Japanese.

However, she used to hold dual citizenship in both Japan and the USA. But according to Japanese law, people need to choose between their Japanese citizenship and other passports when they turn 22.

Following the event, Osaka chose her Japanese citizenship in October 2019 but is also a Haitian.

Japanese people have become fond of this young athlete over the years.

Despite that, Osaka is not fluent in Japanese. Once, she tweeted, “I can understand most Japanese, and I speak when I want to.” 

Social Media Presence 

Leonard Maxime Francois and Tamaki Osaka don’t have public social media. Even after an intense search, we couldn’t find any of their social media handles. 

However, Naomi Osaka is active on social networks. She often posts pictures of her personal life, career, and other aspects of her life on the internet. 

Instagram: 2.7M Followers

Twitter: 1.1M Followers

Facebook: 707K Followers

Popularity Graph 

Being the parents of world-renowned athletes, the parents are heavily searched online.

The above graph shows their search trend for the 12 months. 

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