Free Republic

Tennis star Naomi Osaka said Monday she is withdrawing from the French Open after refusing to speak to the media at the grand slam. The four-time major winner posted a statement on Twitter saying she was pulling out so that "everyone can get back to focusing on the tennis going on in Paris," adding that she would "take some time away from the court." Osaka revealed she had "suffered long bouts of depression" since winning her first Grand Slam title in 2018. Last Wednesday, citing mental health reasons, Osaka posted on social media she would not participate in any news...

The French Open was postponed for about four months because of the coronavirus pandemic, juggling the tennis calendar by shifting from May to September. The French Tennis Federation said Tuesday it will hold its 15-day clay-court event at Roland Garros in Paris from Sept. 20 to Oct. 4, instead of May 24 to June 7, "to ensure the health and safety of everyone involved in organizing the tournament." Federation president Bernard Giudicelli described it as "a difficult yet brave decision in this unprecedented situation."

Serena Williams was the No. 1 tennis player in the world in January of last year. She had just beaten big sister Venus to win the Australian Open for a seventh time. Oh, and she did it while being 8 weeks pregnant. It was an incredible feat. Yet, Serena's pregnancy, which obviously kept her off the professional tennis circuit for months, is now the reason she has fallen to No. 453 in the world. She is making her comeback grand slam debut at this month's French Open in Paris. But, because her maternity leave prevented her from competing for awhile,...

Let the revolution begin. Li Na made history at the French Open on Saturday when she became the first Chinese player to win a grand slam singles title. Her 6-4, 7-6 victory over last year's champion, Francesca Schiavone of Italy, was a performance full of maturity, class and guts and when the pressure came late in the second set, she held firm. If this does not spark a new wave of Chinese players in the years to come then probably nothing will. An estimated audience of 65 million watched the final on television and online in China but the 29-year-old,...