Naomi Osaka Hits the Wimbledon Grass in a Kimono-Inspired Wedding Dress, Made from Vintage Kimonos and Tailored Wedding Dresses

Wimbledon’s white dress code has been strictly enforced since the late 1800s. On one day of the 2026 Games, Naomi Osaka made it a tribute to the event in Japan, walking from the locker room to the court constructed as a one-minute match: the outer layers peeled off in seconds to reveal her match kit underneath.

The 139th edition of Wimbledon began today, Monday, June 29, and will continue until July 12. The women’s final is scheduled for Saturday, July 11, and the men’s final the following day.

Osaka, a four-time Grand Slam champion and former world No. 1, has built a second reputation in the majors with theatrical looks: a jellyfish-studded entrance at the 2026 Australian Open, a black corset that opened to gold at Roland Garros. Wimbledon’s almost complete ban on color was the toughest stage he had faced so far.

It is also a contest where he has the least evidence to testify in mockery and the most evidence in court. All four of his Slam titles have come on hard courts, and he has never gone past the third round at Wimbledon in his career. He arrived in London ranked 14th, coming off his first grass court final in Bad Homburg, where he had to retire due to a right foot injury.

The sneaker’s look, called the “Evolving Event,” was custom-designed by Tokyo-based Hana Yagi and Nike’s design team. It depicts a white shiromuku wedding kimono and a layered junihitoe court dress of the Heian period, composed of restored vintage kimonos, a traditional shiromuku dress, and unmade wedding dresses.

Embroidered cranes, the Japanese symbol of longevity and good luck, run across the fabric next to the rising cherry blossoms. The look is finished with a kanzashi hairpin, Mikimoto pearls, and a long trailing bow. The matching kit underneath is a kirigami-inspired Nike “Slam” dress, with woven micro-pleating, a racerback cut, a soft curved hem, and seven 3D flower dresses with crystal centers. The dress sold out almost immediately after Nike released it online.

Osaka returned to the tour in 2024 after the birth of her first child, and has spoken openly for years about the depression and anxiety that took her out of the region in 2021. She said the Wimbledon color ban helped her, allowing her to focus on texture, fabric, and silhouette rather than color.

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