Naomi Osaka won the 2021 Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year Award on Monday. The Laureus World Sports Awards is an annual award ceremony that honors sports teams and individuals worldwide. The ceremony is the sports’ world equivalent to the Oscars, and luxe designer Cartier makes the Laureus Award.
The annual event was established by the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation over 20 years ago and supported more than 160 community projects in more than 40 countries. The event was virtual this year from Sevilla, Spain, due to COVID-19.
Twenty-three-year-old Naomi Osaka is a busy woman. In addition to winning four Grand Slam titles, being named co-chair of the Met Gala, launching her skincare brand KINLÒ for people of color, the tennis star also has a limited-edition handbag collection with Strathberry.
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The tennis star was also named as Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year for using her platform to highlight racial injustices and police brutality.
Osaka wore seven masks at the U.S. Open with a different name on each mask to honor Black victims of racial attacks or police brutality. The masks included the names of Ahmaud Arbery, Philando Castile, George Floyd, Trayvon Martin, Elijah McClain, Breonna Taylor and Tamir Rice. She also posed for pictures wearing a mask with the name of Emmett Till, a 14-year-old boy murdered in 1955.
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Osaka kept it classy when she thanked the Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, Billie Jean King, during her acceptance speech for her own Laureus Award.
“I just want to say you’ve definitely impacted my life, and I’m very happy that you are being acknowledged for that.”
💬 “I just want to say you’ve definitely impacted my life and I’m very happy that you are being acknowledged for that.”
Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year, @naomiosaka congratulates Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award recipient @BillieJeanKing 🎾 👏#Laureus21 pic.twitter.com/eXLtjx3Fi4
— Laureus (@LaureusSport) May 11, 2021
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Osaka wants all young girls to have an opportunity to play sports and is launching her tennis academy, Play Academy, in Haiti and Los Angeles. The tennis star wanted to expand on her location in Japan, which opened last summer. The Play Academy provides grants to boost girls’ participation in sports.
“We believe that all kids — especially girls — deserve a chance to play, no matter where they come from or what they look like,” said Osaka. “The more we provide girls with opportunities to get active, the more opportunities we are giving them to become leaders in their communities.”
