“She always put others first and encouraged me”: How Naomi Osaka’s mom backed her tennis dreams by working long hours while her father taught both sisters the game

Naomi Osaka’s rise to the top of tennis came with years of work behind it. Her parents, Tamaki Osaka and Leonard François, played very different roles in that journey. While her mother worked hard to support the family and pay for her daughters’ tennis ambitions, her father took charge of their early training despite having little experience with the sport.Their efforts helped Naomi and her older sister, Mari, get the chance to pursue tennis from a young age. And Naomi has never hidden how much she owes them. Naomi Osaka’s mother Tamaki worked long hours to support her daughters’ tennis dreamsNaomi has often spoken about her mother’s sacrifices. In a statement shared with People in May 2021, the four-time Grand Slam champion recalled watching Tamaki work hard to support her passion for tennis.“Growing up, I saw my mother work incredibly hard to support me and my passion for play,” Naomi said. She also added, “She always put others first and encouraged me to embrace my diversity.”Tamaki’s work went beyond simply cheering from the sidelines. She helped support the family financially while Naomi and Mari trained and competed. The costs of developing two young tennis players included equipment, court access and travel. Tamaki took on long working hours to help meet those demands. Naomi later spoke about seeing her mother push through exhaustion, an image that stayed with her as she grew older.There was also a personal side to Tamaki’s support. Naomi grew up in a Japanese-Haitian household, with her mother helping her stay connected to her Japanese roots. The family eventually chose to have Naomi represent Japan, even though she grew up in the United States.For Naomi, her mother’s influence was not limited to tennis. Tamaki encouraged her to accept her background and feel comfortable with her identity. That support became part of the foundation behind the player fans know today. Leonard François followed Richard Williams’ example to coach Naomi and Mari OsakaWhile Tamaki helped make the tennis journey possible, Leonard François took responsibility for teaching his daughters the game. His decision came after watching Venus and Serena Williams compete at the 1999 French Open.Leonard saw similarities between the Williams sisters and his own daughters. He also studied how their father, Richard Williams, had guided their careers. Although Leonard had little tennis experience, he began learning the sport through instructional books and videos before coaching Naomi and Mari.“The blueprint was already there. I just had to follow it,” Leonard told in 2018.The family moved from Japan to Long Island in 2000, when Naomi was three. Leonard then put both girls through demanding practice sessions, with thousands of balls hit as they worked on their game. He later helped move the family to Florida to give them better training opportunities.His role did not end when Naomi became a professional. In October 2019, after her father coached her during tournaments in Osaka and Beijing, Naomi spoke about their relationship in a post-match press conference. She joked that he annoyed her enough to make her angry, which she then used as motivation to win.But she also made her affection clear in a post on X on October 10, 2019. Naomi wrote that she loved her father and felt grateful for everything she learned from him, both on and off the court.Tamaki’s hard work helped provide the opportunity. Leonard’s decision to teach himself tennis gave Naomi and Mari their first lessons. Their approaches were different, but both parents helped build the path that Naomi would eventually take to the top of the sport.Get the latest Sports News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.