One of the most prominent innovations in anime and manga is the magical genre genre, whose origin can be traced all the way back to Fujio Akatsuka’s 1962 story Himitsu no Akko-chan. The genre has inspired many people in both the cosplay and general fashion realms. One of these inspired is tennis player Naomi Osaka, as her outfit for the 2024 U.S. Open clearly illustrates.
Naomi Osaka: Anime Tennis
On August 26, Naomi Osaka posted an image of herself in an outfit with an obvious magical girl theme. The outfit consisted of a black frill dress with an oversized ribbon on her back. The design gives off a very Sailor Moon vibe at first glance, although upon closer inspection, Cardcaptor Sakura seems like a more plausible inspiration for this particular outfit’s overall design. The general look and feel of the get-up definitely feels like one C.L.A.M.P. would go for.
Although she didn’t keep the outfit with the big, frilly skirts on during the match itself (that outfit and the jacket with its accompanying huge bow were specific to the walk-on), Osaka made her anime inspiration pretty clear across the board. She, in turn, might inspire other participants at future U.S. Opens to showcase anime-themed outfits during walk-ons rather than sticking to more conventional tennis uniforms that might have been seen in previous years.
Why Osaka Chose The Anime Girl Outfit
According to a press release from her sponsor, Nike, Naomi Osaka said her inspiration was “feeling like a ‘magical girl’ on the court.” She also said that “wanting everyone who sees the outfit to connect with that feeling is a really big motivation for me.” She mentioned viewing the outfit as a “super-suit,” among other things.
Final Thoughts
Incorporating magical girl-style anime into sports feels like a natural fit, especially since these anime series give off vibes of positive emotions and run on the idea that feelings and friendships can give you superpowers. Using this imagery in sports uniforms is a great way to combine sports and cosplaying.
In many respects, the outfits players wear at major sports events also serve as advertisements for the companies that make these outfits, so seeing an athlete decked out in an outfit that follows a theme with some degree of mainstream appeal makes sense. It’s quite likely that including anime aesthetics in sports uniforms will become a trend in the future. Osaka’s statement that she wanted the people watching to have the same feeling of fun she had wearing her anime-themed outfit will undoubtedly have something to do with encouraging that trend, though.
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