Osaka breaks from IMG to start own sports agency
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[May 12, 2022] By
Amy Tennery
(Reuters) -Four-times major winner Naomi Osaka is breaking away from
IMG to launch her own sports agency with longtime agent Stuart
Duguid.
Duguid and Osaka began discussing the venture at the Tokyo Olympics
last year, Duguid told Reuters via email, adding that the firm,
called Evolve, will operate as a "small boutique and bespoke
agency."
"We were discussing the business models of some of her mentors like
Kobe (Bryant) and Lebron (James). We thought – why has no
transcendent female athlete done that yet," he said.
"It's athlete driven and focused on big picture brand building
rather than quick checks with a commission attached."
Duguid said he could not share much about the identities of the
initial clients but added, "it would be only athletes who transcend
their sports; or those with the potential to do so."
Former number one Osaka, the first player for Japan to win a Grand
Slam, has emerged as a leading advocate for athlete mental health
and wellbeing since she pulled out of the French Open a year ago and
disclosed she had been suffering from depression for years.
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Japan's Naomi Osaka in action during her second round match against
Spain's Sara Sorribes Tormo REUTERS/Susana Vera
On Wednesday she tweeted a compilation of clips
from her earlier playing days in which she discussed her career
aspirations with the caption "Hey kid, you’ve come a long way and
even though there’s been some bumps on the road I hope you know
you’re doing amazing."
In one of the clips, she prophetically discussed what she might be
doing were she not a tennis player.
"I just like sports, so maybe (I would be) like an agent in the
end," she said.
(Reporting by Amy Tennery in New York; Editing by Pritha Sarkar and
Muralikumar Anantharaman)
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