Wednesday 25 September 2019 13:36, UK
Japanese comic duo 'A Masso' have apologised to Naomi Osaka for suggesting she "needed some bleach".
The remarks were made on a show just hours after this year's winner of the Australian Open beat Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the Pan Pacific Open on Sunday in her hometown of Osaka.
The duo also included suggestions that the Haitian-Japanese player was "too sunburned".
The female comic pair have since apologised through their entertainment company Watanabe Entertainment, for their "inappropriate, hurtful comments".
One part of the female duo, Ai Murakami, said: "We made remarks that hurt many people, something we will never do again" and apologised for causing "the specific person [to] feel uncomfortable, as well as for everyone else connected to the event".
Watanabe apologised too for the pair's words which it deemed "inconsiderate of diversity in an era where diversity is respected".
The company has insisted that the comic pair have been duly warned about their content for future comedy events.
Osaka and her team are yet to comment.
Japanese born to a Haitian father, the athlete moved to the United States when young and has been idolised in her home country for her success as a mixed-race athlete, among others such as sprinter Asuka Cambridge.
In January, Japanese noodle company Nissin was made to remove an advert featuring the now two-time Grand Slam winner because of accusations of "whitewashing" her skin.
