Naomi Osaka will do all that it takes to represent Japan.
The 2018 U.S. Open champion and the world's third-ranked tennis player, Naomi Osaka plans on giving up her U.S. citizenship in order to represent Japan in the upcoming 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, according to the Washington Post.
Osaka was born in Japan, to a Japanese mother and a Haitian father, but had moved with her family to New York at the age of 3-years-old. According to Japan's Nationality Act, individuals who hold dual citizenship must choose one nation before their 22nd birthday and Osaka 22nd birthday is on Wednesday, Oct. 16th.
“It is a special feeling to aim for the Olympics as a representative of Japan,' she told the Japanese broadcaster NHK. “I think that playing with the pride of the country will make me feel more emotional."
“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,' said Naomi's mother Tamaki in an interview a year ago.
It will be an exciting time to see Osaka play next year as she respectfully represents Japan.
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