Reuters reports that Japanese comedy duo A Masso (マッソ) have apologized for joking that Naomi Osaka “needed some bleach”.
The duo made the remarks on Sunday when the Japanese tennis star won the Pan Pacific Open after beating Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.
It was also suggested by the comedians that Osaka, whose father is from Haiti, is “too sun burned”.
A Masso have since apologized for their remarks through their management company, Watanabe Entertainment Co Ltd, for their “inappropriate, hurtful remarks”.
“Though we should have thought about it, we made remarks that hurt many people, something we will never do again,” Ai Murakami, one half of the A Masso wrote.
“We sincerely apologize for making the specific person feel uncomfortable, as well as for everyone else connected to the event. We also sincerely apologize for causing trouble.”
Watanabe Entertainment also apologized for “remarks inconsiderate of diversity in an era where diversity is respected.”
A Masso is comprised of Murakami and fellow comedian Aiko Kano.
