Naomi Osaka announced herself to the world by winning her first WTA title at the Indian Wells Open in 2018. She defeated the legendary Serena Williams in the historic final. As the world welcomed a new star, Naomi’s father, Leonard Francois, was proud of his daughter. Here is the story of the man behind Osaka’s success.
Source: Getty Images
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Key takeaways
- Leonard Francois is a Haitian-American professional tennis coach.
- He is known as the father of Naomi Osaka, a Japanese professional tennis player.
- Osaka was once ranked as the world number one and the first Japanese player to win a major singles title in tennis.
Profile summary
| Full name | Leonard Maxime Francois |
| Gender | Male |
| Place of birth | Jacmel, Haiti |
| Current residence | Osaka, Japan |
| Nationality | Haitian |
| Ethnicity | African (Haitian) |
| Religion | Christianity |
| Sexuality | Straight |
| Height in feet | 6 ft 0 in (183 cm) |
| Eye colour | Dark brown |
| Hair colour | Black |
| Marital status | Married |
| Spouse | Tamaki Osaka |
| Children | 2 (Mari Osaka & Naomi Osaka) |
| Education | New York University |
| Profession | Tennis coach |
Who is Leonard Francois?
Leonard Maxime Francois is a tennis coach. He is best known for coaching his children, Mari and Naomi Osaka, in the sport.
Early life
The tennis coach was born Leonard Maxime Francois in Jacmel, Haiti. His date of birth remains unknown.
Although he was born in Haiti, Leonard Francois moved to the United States. He lived in New York and even went to New York University for higher studies.
After finishing college, he went to Japan in 1990, where he met his wife. Leonard stayed in Japan for many years.
Source: Original
What is Leonard François’ nationality?
Leonard’s nationality is Haitian-American. His ethnicity is African (Haitian).
Career
Leonard Francois worked in Japan for close to a decade. He then moved to the United States and settled in Long Island for five years.
Before moving with his family from Japan, Francois saw the French Open featuring Venus and Serena Williams, who were 18 and 17, respectively, as they teamed up to win the doubles.
The win inspired him, and he followed the blueprint laid down by Serena’s father. He started training his children to play tennis in the United States. At the time, Mari Osaka was four, and Naomi was three.
Not long after starting training, Leonard realised that Long Island lacked the best facilities to train his children. In 2006, he moved his family to Florida to get better training opportunities for his children.
Francois became a coach to his two daughters. He did not send them to school but homeschooled them every day in the evening. During the day, he would train his daughters how to hit the ball and repeat it several thousand times. Later on, he took his children to a tennis academy to improve their game.
Leonard continued to coach Naomi even after she found other coaches. After a series of losses, he reunited with her daughter around 2019 and became her head coach.
Source: Getty Images
What is Leonard Francois’ net worth?
Leonard Francois’ net worth is not known in the public domain. On the other hand, Naomi Osaka’s net worth is estimated at $45 million.
Is Leonard Francois married?
Leonard is married and has two children. His wife is Tamaki Osaka, a Japanese national from Nemuro, Hokkaido, Japan.
Leonard and Tamaki met in 1990. At that time, he was still a college student in New York who had gone on a trip to Japan while Tamaki was in high school. Japan had a few black men since the country had recently allowed foreigners to travel there.
Leonard Francois and Tamaki Osaka started dating. They kept their relationship private for a while. Tamaki was in her 20s and did not want to reveal anything about her dating life because her father wanted to begin the Japanese matchmaking process called omiai.
Omiai would allow her father to find a suitable partner for her and arrange a marriage. Eventually, Tamaki Osaka revealed that she was already dating someone.
That revelation did not sit well with her father when it became apparent that the person she referred to was a foreigner who was also black. Tamaki’s outraged dad excoriated her because he had brought disgrace to his family.
That did not stop Leonard and Tamaki from continuing their relationship. The lovebirds moved south to Osaka, Japan. Leonard found work and lived in the country for more than a decade. Throughout that period, Tamaki made no contact with her family.
On 3 April 1996, Leonard and his wife welcomed their first daughter, Mari Osaka. Eighteen months later, their second daughter, Naomi Osaka, was born. Naomi was born on 16 October 1997. Three years later, he moved his family to Elmont, New York, and settled in Long Island.
In 2006, Leonard moved his family to Florida to give his two daughters an excellent environment to train in tennis. Eventually, he made his children pros in the sport. Today, Leonard lives in Osaka, Japan, but travels with his daughter Naomi whenever she has a tennis tournament.
Source: Getty Images
Is Osaka half-black?
Naomi Osaka is half-Black, half-Japanese. She was born to a Japanese mother and a Haitian father on 16 October 1997.
Naomi Osaka’s age is 28 years as of 2025, and her Zodiac sign is Libra. Talking about her heritage, Naomi said:
My dad’s Haitian, so I grew up in a Haitian household in New York. I lived with my grandma. And my mom’s Japanese and I grew up with the Japanese culture too, and if you’re saying American, I guess because I lived in America, I also have that too.
She added:
Japanese culture? I kind of love everything about it… And Haiti, if you’ve ever met a Haitian person, they are really positive, and literally if you’re friends with them, then they will do anything for you. That’s something that is a really good trait, and I’m really happy that my grandparents and my dad’s side of the family is like that.
Source: Getty Images
Why did Naomi Osaka take her mom’s last name?
Naomi and her sister Mari took their mother’s last name because they lived in Japan, and it was easier for them to be enrolled in schools and access other services with a Japanese name. The choice also showed Leonard’s strong desire and effort to raise his children the Japanese way.
What is Naomi Osaka‘s TV series about?
The television series Naomi Osaka follows the life of professional tennis player Naomi Osaka. It explores her challenges and wins as an internationally acclaimed tennis player.
Who is Naomi Osaka’s baby daddy?
Grammy-nominated rapper Cordae is Naomi Osaka’s baby daddy. Naomi and Cordae welcomed their daughter, Shai, in July 2023.
The two split in January 2025 but maintain cordial ties and are co-parenting Shai. It is worth mentioning that there is no information about Naomi Osaka’s husband because she is not married as of October 2025.
Source: Getty Images
Trivia
- Leonard Francois’ daughter, Naomi, is fluent in English, Japanese, and Haitian Creole.
- He is an animal lover.
- Leonard rarely watches his daughters play tennis because it gets him stressed, but he has appeared in many matches in which his daughters compete.
- He taught Naomi and Maki how to play tennis on clay courts, just like Serena Williams’ dad did.
- Leonard Francois’s wife, Tamaki, reconciled with her parents after 15 years of no contact.
Leonard Francois is a Haitian-American professional tennis coach who is the father of Naomi Osaka and Mari Osaka. He is well credited for coaching his two daughters to play tennis since they were quite young.
Tuko.co.ke recently published an article about Taylor Fritz’s parents, Kathy May and Guy Fritz. Kathy May and Guy Fritz were professional tennis players.
Kathy won seven career titles and was a three-time grand slam quarterfinalist. Although Guy Fritz played tennis, he is known more for his coaching. Kathy plays an advisory role in his son’s career, supporting him in his travels and being there when he needs her.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
