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The commercial depicted Osaka, whose father is
Haitian and mother is Japanese, with pale skin and light brown
hair, which created public outcry.
Osaka initially did not want to be drawn into the controversy
saying her focus was solely on the Australian Open after she
became the first Japanese player to reach the final at Melbourne
Park.
"I've talked to them. They've apologized," the player, who was
born in Japan before moving to the United States as a
three-year-old, told reporters when pressed further. "For me,
it's obvious, I'm tan. It's pretty obvious.
"I don't think they did it on purpose to be, like, whitewashing
or anything. But I definitely think that the next time they try
to portray me or something, I feel like they should talk to me
about it."
Nissin, who sponsor Osaka and compatriot Kei Nishikori, removed
the advert from its YouTube page on Wednesday and said they had
not intended to 'whitewash' the 21-year-old, who will feature in
the Australia Open semi-finals later on Thursday.
"There is no intention of whitewashing," a Nissin spokesperson
said. "We accept that we are not sensitive enough and will pay
more attention to diversity issues in the future."
Japan has traditionally seen itself as a racially homogenous
country, although several successful mixed-race athletes like
Osaka, sprinter Asuka Cambridge and baseball pitcher Yu Darvish,
are challenging that image.
(Additional reporting by Jack Tarrant; Editing by Greg
Stutchbury/Amlan Chakraborty)
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