Osaka’s court brilliance — and advocacy — paid off in 2020

Tennis superstar Naomi Osaka won the U.S. Open in 2020, but likely will be remembered more for her comments on racial injustice. Osaka was selected as the 2020 Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year.

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Sports

December 29, 2020 - 8:43 AM

Naomi Osaka of Japan has been chosen as the Associated Press 2020 Female Athlete of the Year. Photo by John Cordes / Icon Sportswire / Icon SMI / Zuma Press / TNS

With tennis, like so much of the world, shut down because of the coronavirus pandemic, Naomi Osaka found herself with time to read and think.

And while she won the U.S. Open for her third Grand Slam title, she also stood out for speaking out about racial injustice and police brutality.

As noteworthy in 2020 for her activism away from the tennis court as her success on it, Osaka was selected by The Associated Press as the Female Athlete of the Year in results revealed Sunday after a vote by AP member sports editors and AP beat writers.

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