Naomi Osaka: the grandfather who rejected her Haitian father became her proudest fan

Before she became a four-time Grand Slam champion, Naomi Osaka was born of a love her Japanese family rejected. Her maternal grandfather, Tetsuo Osaka, would not accept that his daughter Tamaki was with a Haitian man, Leonard François. Years later, the same grandfather was praising his granddaughter's titles at a press conference. The story is making the rounds on social media again.

A meeting in Sapporo

Tamaki Osaka grew up in Nemuro, a fishing port at the far eastern tip of Hokkaido island. In Sapporo she met Leonard François, from Jacmel, who had come to Japan after studying in New York. The couple hid their relationship. When Tamaki finally told her parents, her father opposed it, the New York Times Magazine reported in 2018.

Tamaki and Leonard settled in Osaka, where their two daughters were born, Mari and then Naomi, on October 16, 1997. The girls carry their mother's family name. According to the New York Times, Tamaki had virtually no contact with her family for more than a decade. The family later moved to the United States, first New York and then Florida, where Leonard François coached his daughters himself.

The grandfather at a press conference

The bond was rebuilt over time. In January 2019, when Naomi Osaka won the Australian Open, her second Grand Slam title after the 2018 US Open, Tetsuo Osaka, then 74 and head of the Nemuro fishing cooperative, held a press conference at the city hall. He said he was proud of his granddaughter, according to Japanese television footage.

A story going around

The story was picked up this week by the Facebook page Le Terrain and widely shared. Some details circulating online, such as the grandfather crying in front of his television in 2018, could not be verified in press sources. In the comments, a woman who says she is a friend of the family also disputes part of the account. The exact length of the estrangement varies from source to source.

Naomi Osaka, who represents Japan, has always highlighted her Haitian roots. In November 2018, after her US Open title, she traveled to Haiti, where President Jovenel Moïse received her at the National Palace and named her goodwill ambassador for Haitian sport. She also visited Jacmel, her father's hometown.