Expand / Collapse search
Watch TV
Menu

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. ©2024 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Market data provided by Factset. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Legal Statement. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper.

Tennis

Naomi Osaka faces racist remarks from Japanese comedy duo who said she 'needed some bleach'

By Ryan Gaydos Fox News
Published
close
Fox News Flash top headlines for Sept. 25 Video

Fox News Flash top headlines for Sept. 25

Fox News Flash top headlines for Sept. 25 are here. Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com

A Japanese comedy duo and their management company have apologized to tennis star Naomi Osaka after they made racist remarks about her during an event Sunday.

The duo, known as A Masso, said that Osaka “needed some bleach” and that she “is too sunburned,” Reuters reported, citing Japanese media. The pair made the comments on the same day Osaka, who was born in Japan to a Japanese mother and Haitian father, won the Pan Pacific Open.

WIMBLEDON FINALIST'S NIECE DIES UNEXPECTEDLY DURING TRIP TO WASHINGTON, FAMILY SAYS

Watanabe Entertainment Co. Ltd., the team’s management company, wrote in a statement apologizing for “remarks inconsiderate of diversity in an era where diversity is respect." The company did not mention Osaka by name in their apology.

Japan's Naomi Osaka makes a forehand return to Russia's Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova during their final match at the Toray Pan Pacific Open tennis tournament in Osaka, western Japan, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2019. Osaka won her first singles title since the Australian Open in January by beating Pavlyuchenkova 6-2, 6-3 in the final. (Kyodo News via AP)

Japan's Naomi Osaka makes a forehand return to Russia's Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova during their final match at the Toray Pan Pacific Open tennis tournament in Osaka, western Japan, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2019. Osaka won her first singles title since the Australian Open in January by beating Pavlyuchenkova 6-2, 6-3 in the final. (Kyodo News via AP)

The pair also apologized in a statement posted on the management company’s website but also didn’t mention one of the world’s top tennis players by name.

“Though we should have thought about it, we made remarks that hurt many people, something we will never do again,” A Masso said. “We sincerely apologize for making the specific person feel uncomfortable, as well as for everyone else connected to the event. We also sincerely apologize for causing trouble.”

FLASHBACK: NAOMI OSAKA'S SPONSOR APOLOGIZES AFTER CLAIMS OF 'WHITEWASHING' STAR IN ADVERTISEMENT

Osaka, 22, has not commented on the issue.

It’s not the first time Osaka, who won the Australian Open in January, faced racism this year.

Osaka’s sponsor, Nissin, was accused of "white-washing" the tennis star after an advertisement for the noodle company showed the champion with pale skin.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

“There is no intention of whitewashing,” a Nissin spokesperson told the Guardian at the time. “We accept that we are not sensitive enough and will pay more attention to diversity issues in the future.”