Meet Her Parents, Sister, and Daughter
Last year at the U.S. Open, former champion Naomi Osaka made her return to the tournament after a two-year hiatus. “Arthur Ashe—or any court they decide to put me on—it’s special,” she told Town & Country. “It’s a stage. I think New York, the U.S. Open, makes stars and there’s just a special type of energy there.”
This year, possibly cheering her on for the first time will be her daughter, Shai. “It would be her first time at a tennis match, so I don’t know how loud she’s going to be,” Naomi revealed on the Today show. As the tennis star competes in the semifinals, get to know her family:
Naomi Osaka’s mom, Tamaki Osaka
Tamaki Osaka and Naomi Osaka at the 2023 U.S. Open
Naomi’s mom, Tamaki, is from Nemuro, Hokkaido, Japan.
“Growing up, I’ve always seen her being so independent and so strong, but now that I’m thinking about it, she must have been really worried all the time,” she said in 2023. Per InStyle, “Tamaki worked overtime in the import and export industry in New York, sometimes sleeping in her car. Osaka has admitted that she practiced tennis so intensely back then because she wanted her mom to not have to work so hard.”
Naomi and her mom at Wimbledon 2024.
“I just can’t imagine how stressful it was,” Naomi said of what her mom dealt with when Naomi was young. “She was the type that did everything for me and my sister. I feel like, in that way, she sort of lost, like: What does she like to do? And what does she want to do in the future?”
When Naomi was a child, her family moved to the U.S. to Long Island, but she still represents Japan internationally. “We made the decision that Naomi would represent Japan at an early age,” Tamaki said. “She was born in Osaka and was brought up in a household of Japanese and Haitian culture. Quite simply, Naomi and her sister, Mari, have always felt Japanese so that was our only rationale. It was never a financially motivated decision nor were we ever swayed either way by any national federation.”
Naomi Osaka’s dad, Leonard François
Leonard at the 2022 U.S. Open.
Naomi’s dad, Leonard, is from Jacmel, Haiti. Inspired by Richard Williams—father of Venus and Serena—he taught his daughters how to play tennis. He told New York Times, “The blueprint was already there. I just had to follow it.” He briefly worked as Naomi’s coach.
“Recently I had a talk with my dad,” Naomi posted on Instagram earlier this summer. “It wasn’t a short talk but during that conversation something he said really stuck with me. He had told me how at 59 years old he feels closer to the end of his life than the beginning and its made him want to enjoy and treasure the years he has left. He told me he finds this interesting because he thinks my tennis career is potentially similar.”
Naomi Osaka’s sister, Mari Osaka
Naomi, left, and Mari, right, in 2017.
Mari, Naomi’s older sister, had a brief career as a professional tennis player. She retired from professional tennis in 2021, and now focuses on art and design. That same year, she co-designed Naomi’s Met Gala look in collaboration with Nicolas Ghesquière.
Naomi at the 2021 Met Gala.
“Working alongside my sister and an iconic designer like Nicholas Ghesquière was inspiring,” Mari told Vogue at the time. “The design we ended up creating speaks to our biracial heritage and in that, I believe it really celebrates who we all are and how we all play a role in the American Dream. It’s a celebration of cultures, like America itself, a melting pot of so many special and unique elements.”
Naomi Osaka’s daughter, Shai
In July 2023, Naomi and her then-boyfriend American rapper Cordae, welcomed a daughter, Shai.
Emily Burack (she/her) is the Senior News Editor for Town & Country, where she covers entertainment, celebrities, the royals, and a wide range of other topics. Before joining T&C, she was the deputy managing editor at Hey Alma, a Jewish culture site. Follow her @emburack on Twitter and Instagram.