*Tennis star Naomi Osaka is starting her own sports agency.
According to Sportico, 24-year-old Osaka, the highest-paid female athlete in the world, is partnering with her IMG agent Stuart Duguid, in the venture named Evolve. Each will hold equity stakes in the company, per the report.
Check out the video report about her latest venture below.
READ MORE: Naomi Osaka Just WON Her First Match Since Heckling Incident – She’s Feelin’ Good! | WATCH
“I’ve spent my career doing things my way, even when people told me that it wasn’t what was expected or traditional, Evolve is the natural next step in my journey as both an athlete and businesswoman,” Osaka told Sportico.
Duguid told Reuters that he and Osaka began brainstorming the idea for a sports agency during last summer’s Tokyo Olympics.
“We were discussing the business models of some of her mentors like Kobe (Bryant) and LeBron (James),” Duguid said. “We thought — why has no transcendent female athlete done that yet.”
View this post on Instagram
Osaka is a four-time singles champion in Grand Slam tournaments. She won her fourth Grand Slam singles title at the 2021 Australian Open. She dropped out of the French Open last year due to mental health concerns.
The former No. 1 is reportedly now ranked No. 38.
