Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka earn nominations at exclusive BET Awards
WTASaturday, 18 May 2024 at 03:00
Tennis superstars Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka have been nominated for Sportswoman of the Year at the upcoming BET Awards. The two athletes stand out as they are the only tennis players on a list dominated by basketball players.
The Black Entertainment Television Network is set to host their annual BET Awards this year. Tennis fans were delighted to see Gauff and Osaka among the nominees on the Sportswoman of the Year list, which is indicative of their contributions to spreading the popularity of tennis in the United States.
The two US Open champions are featured on a list that is dominated by basketball players. WNBA stars A'ja Wilson, Angel Reese, Flau’jae Johnson and JuJu Watkins have also been selected as nominees for the prestigious award. Rounding out the list are track and field sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson and Olympic gold medalist gymnast Simone Biles.
This is not Osaka's debut nomination at the event, as the four-time Grand Slam champion won the award in 2021 and 2022. However, WTA legend Serena Williams holds the record of having the most number of victories in this category. The American has won the Sportswoman of the Year Award on 16 occasions, winning it for 10 consecutive years from 2009 till 2019. After the 23-time Grand Slam champion, Osaka is the only other player to have won this award on multiple occasions.
Growing up in a household where soccer was king, my earliest memories are filled with chants from packed stadiums and the rhythm of a ball being passed across neighborhood streets. But somewhere along the way, the quiet elegance and raw emotion of tennis pulled me in. What began as a curiosity became a lifelong passion; not just for the sport itself, but for the stories it tells: of grit, of heartbreak, of improbable comebacks and human resilience.
As a tennis writer, I bring the observational lens of someone who didn’t grow up in the sport, but fell in love with it as an outsider; a perspective that lets me see both its technical beauty and its emotional depth. Over the years working with TennisUpToDate, I’ve had the privilege of reaching more than 3.5 million readers worldwide, with one of my features ranking among the site’s top three articles.
With a background in storytelling and a creative mind always searching for meaning beyond the scoreboard, I aim to craft narratives that go deeper than results and rankings. Whether it’s a rising star breaking through or a veteran fighting off Father Time, I try to capture the heartbeat behind the headlines.
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- Clearly not AI :-)
AceOfBase11-09-2026 - Oh my God!! Does anyone proofread these pages??? Case in point: However, the question mark over the 32-years-old head......???? No! No! No! However, the question mark over the 32-year-old's head...good grief man, hire a proofreader. This article is rife with errors making some sentences very difficult to read. I had to stop. I am a proofreader hence my disgust.Rapunzel10-09-2026
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mandoist08-09-2026 - Don't lay this shitshow on "Americans". It is a long-running Ego trip with WTA allowing these two Elitists 'in need of a Camera' illicit Wildcards. If these two clowns want to "perform" -- then play the qualies.mandoist08-09-2026
- Here we go again…. Different rules for Americans! Especially THESE Americans. Yuck!DaveyWavey07-09-2026
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