Naomi Osaka pulled out of the semi-finals of the Western & Southern Open tennis tournament on Wednesday in protest at racial injustice. Osaka, who has a Japanese mother and Haitian father and has been a vocal supporter of the "Black Lives Matter" movement, said in a social media post: "Before I am an athlete, I am a Black woman". Her decision follows protests over the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man, in the city of Kenosha, Wisconsin, on Sunday. "Watching the continued genocide of Black people at the hand of the police is honestly making me sick to my stomach." Osaka beat Anett Kontaveit 4-6 6-2 7-5 on Wednesday to reach the semi-finals, where the two-time Grand Slam champion was due to face Elise Mertens.

Source: dna August 27, 2020 01:41 UTC