Naomi Osaka to donate her earnings from Western & Southern Open to Haiti
Naomi Osaka has pledged to donate her earnings from the Western & Southern Open to support earthquake relief efforts in Haiti.
The four-time Grand Slam champion announced her pledge in response to the 7.2-magnitude quake that struck the impoverished country on Saturday
The death toll rose to 724 on Sunday as rescue workers scrambled to find survivors buried under buildings as a tropical storm bore down on the Caribbean nation.
Really hurts to see all the devastation that’s going on in Haiti, and I feel like we really can’t catch a break. I’m about to play a tournament this week and I’ll give all the prize money to relief efforts for Haiti. I know our ancestors blood is strong we’ll keep rising 🇭🇹❤️🙏🏾
— NaomiOsaka大坂なおみ (@naomiosaka) August 14, 2021
Haiti is still clawing its way back from another major temblor 11 years ago and reeling from the assassination of its president Jovenel Moise last month.
“Really hurts to see all the devastation that’s going on in Haiti, and I feel like we really cant catch a break,” Osaka said on Twitter.
“I’m about to play a tournament this week and I’ll give all the prize money to relief efforts for Haiti. I know our ancestors blood is strong we’ll keep rising.”
Osaka, whose father is Haitian, has used her platform to call attention to the causes she cares about.
She is seeded second at the tournament in Cincinnati, which runs from August 16-22, ahead of the US Open in New York which begins on August 30.