…are you under the impression that Osaka isn’t some great asset?
Paying the fine is the terms of the contract. If the French Open didn’t like that part of the contract they shouldn’t have signed it.
Again, is this a thread specifically about Osaka or a discussion of the broader topic?
…again, looking at this broadly, how much is this a problem? Outside of Osaka how often does this come up? Any specifics you want to address?
And why shouldn’t this be applied broadly? Player contracts should make accommodation for the health and well-being of the players. This is a conversation we should be having: not only in sport, but everywhere else.
It currently is a violation of contracts, which presumably limits it. I think it’s reasonable to assume that if we voided those contract clauses and allowed athletes to skip publicity events at will, many of them would do so.
I’m okay for allowing athletes to opt out of a publicity event under special circumstances. But I feel if we allow the athletes to decide for themselves when special circumstances exist, many of them will abuse the system.
…so outside of Osaka’s case it broadly isn’t a problem then.
Gotcha.
Gosh. Some professional athletes might “abuse the system” and skip a couple of meaningless meandering press conferences. Is that such a bad thing?
I honestly don’t get it. You can put systems in place to mitigate “abuse of the system.” Like you might require a doctors certificate. Or something else. It wouldn’t be hard to figure it out. But “abuse of the system” is rarely a good reason to not take action. It’s how you end up with a punitive welfare system that makes it harder for people to access, its what stops mental health being an issue taken seriously in the workplace.
I’m not sure that would be so reasonable or practical. Every athlete has issues they have to work through and overcome to get to the top. Part of becoming a champion is working through those issues. Not all athletes have the same issues or the same number of issues, but I’m sure every athlete deals with mental challenges on an ongoing basis. And making special accommodations for them would be especially challenging for things that could potentially give an athlete a competitive advantage. Not going through a press conference means more time to rest and mentally recharge and that athlete would have an advantage over other athletes who did the press conference. You’d have some athletes skipping the press conference, others saying they won’t compete in the large and loud stadiums, others only playing in the morning, etc. Unfortunately, pro sports is not about coddling people for whatever difficulties they have. That goes for both physical and mental difficulties. Lots of great competitors drop out because they can’t handle the sport for one reason or the other. That’s just the way it goes.
…you don’t think that it is reasonable or practical to try to make accommodations for mental health in the workplace?
Yes, this is what I’ve been saying all along. We have a system in place that seems to be working. I’m saying we should keep this system. You guys are the ones suggesting we make changes.
…and yet we have a player coming out to say that the system isn’t working for her. And we have years of experience showing how toxic this system has been to players, particularly women and women of colour.
Are you personally fine with a system? Of course, you are. That’s typically how it works. You have no skin in the game.
Yep. And for good reason.
This is backwards. Osaka has a disadvantage due to mental health issues. She just dropped out of a tournament rather than have to face the press for a short time after her matches. To other athletes, it might be time they’d rather spend doing other things, but it’s not such a big deal to have to do it. Certainly not worth dropping out of the tournament over. Letting her do only the on-court questions would be a way to even things out.
Virtually all athletes have mental struggles. Yeah, some athletes might not mind the presser, but those athletes almost certainly have other mental struggles they deal with. I’m sure many athletes have dropped out of their sport because they suffer from social anxiety or fear of public speaking. She is not the only one who suffers from this. It’s too bad when that happens, but that’s the way it goes. Part of being a competitive athlete is overcoming your personal issues. Sometimes that can’t be done and the athlete does not continue in the sport. Maybe amateur sports can manage these issues, but pro sports with money on the line can’t make accommodations for each individual athlete’s limitations.
…we are talking about mental illness. This isn’t analogous to “fear of public speaking.” You aren’t addressing the issue at hand.
Why not? The pro sports are, as you noted, the ones with the money - it should, therefore, be easier for them to makes these accommodations.
So let a few people abuse the system.
I cannot remember the last time I worked in a place that insisted on a doctor’s note if you took a sick day or two. They just let people take them. The odd person abused the system, I imagine, but letting people take care of themselves and build up a sense of trust was worth far, far more.
Certainly they can, but it would fundamentally change the nature competitive sports. Competitive sports at the top levels generally do not make accommodations for limitations of any kind. If someone has a physical limitation which limits their ability to compete, oh well, they lose. And it’s the same with mental limitations. That may be harsh, but that’s the nature of top-level competitive sports. Winners and losers are separated by the slimmest margins. Making accommodations for an individual athlete’s limitations changes the balance of competition. The world wouldn’t end if they did make individual accommodations, but it would be a drastic change to pro sports.
Uh huh. Try that in professional sports. Call your coach and tell him you’re feeling under the weather and you’re going to skip the upcoming game and stay home.
When your employer is literally paying you a million dollars to show up for work, they’re going to want to see some documentation.
…so you would be fine with a doctors note then?
Okay. We go with that.
I’ve said all along that I don’t think individuals should be able to opt out of promotional activities just by saying they have a problem. But I have no issue with them opting out when they have a genuine problem that they can demonstrate exists to an impartial third party.
…the after-match-tennis-press-conference is not an inherent part of competitive sports. It is, at best in today’s interconnected world, it is a ritual. A sideshow. It provides specific benefits to the tournament and to the press, and also for many fans that are following along. But making accommodation for a few players to skip a press conference for the good of their own mental health doesn’t fundamentally change the nature of competitive sports.