Rinky Hijikata Parents and Family Life Of Tennis Player

Rinky Hijikata parents Makoto and Junko Hijikata are Japanese who emigrated to Australia in the late 90s from Tokyo.

Rinky, age 21, was raised alongside his two elder siblings and came from a family that valued sports a lot. His dad, Makoto, is a tennis coach and is the one who made Rinky fall in love with the genteel game. 

The tennis coach would take his three kids to the tennis court with a bucket of balls and train them. It started with Makoto training his two older kids, with Rinky only a spectator and the ball boy for them.

In his interview with Tennis Australia, Rinky recalled some of the childhood moments that he spent with his father and said he was the one who had the biggest influence on his tennis career. 

Junko Hijikata, like any other Asian parent, was concerned about her son’s academic side as Rinky had already faced several injuries in his young tennis career, which made it impossible to think that he might have to quit the sport early. 

Rinky didn’t disappoint his mother. The 21-year-old accepted his scholarship offer from the North Carolina University in business and administration, where he developed himself academically and in the courts. 

Junko was present at the Arthur Ashe Stadium in August 2022 when she saw her son give the legend of the game Rafael Nadal a scare as he snatched the first set from him. Rafa went on to win the match, but that was the day Junko saw her son crowned the next superstar of the game. 

Rinky Hijikata comes from an athletic family with his two siblings who have found their passion in swimming.

Rinky is not the only one from his family of six to pursue sports and build a career in it. The 21-year-old was trained by his dad, Makoto, at a young age and through him found a passion for the sport. 

His mother, though worried about his academics, has always frequented his game, especially the grandest one of his life. His two siblings, Shori and Kamiyu were swimmers who their father first trained in the same sport that Rinky looks to dominate for years to come.

The Hijikata Siblings

The Hijikata siblings are nothing but high achievers. Rinky’s elder brother Kamiyu is a University Tutor, and his elder sister, is in a senior position at her job. 

The siblings, though raised in Australia by their parents, spent most of their early 20s in foreign nations pursuing their dreams and studies. 

Kamiyu Hijikata

The eldest of the three, Kamiyu Hijikata, is a graduate of the University of Tokyo. The eldest Hijikata graduated with a degree in Bachelor of Liberal Arts, International Program in Environment Sciences in 2018.

Kamiyu earned his master’s degree from The University of New South Wales in 2022 and is now a part-time tutor at the same university. Before becoming a tutor, Kamiyu worked as a data analytics internet at the Big 4 Audit firm, KPMG’s branch in Australia, and was also a tutor in his homeland Japan.

Shori Hijikata

The elder sister of Rinky, Shori Hijikata, is a double-degree graduate of Harvard University. She earned a degree in art and neurobiology from one of the most prestigious universities in the world in 2016. 

Currently, Shori is chief of staff to the CEO of the Indonesian company, Xendit. She has previously founded several other companies, including an Australian company named Feather and another named Antler. 

In 2022, Shori was featured by Forbes in their segment 30 Under 30-Asia-Media, Marketing, and Advertising. She was featured for her work as a founder of the company Shirts of Startups which was making groundbreaking moves in the Australian tech scene. 

Shori is available on Instagram with the username @shorihijikata. Over there, she showcases her talent in photography and has shared many breathtaking snaps of all around the world, including the skies and the seas. 

Rinky Hijikata girlfriend Lauren Baddour used to compete in tennis tournaments at junior levels.

The current partner of Rinky Hijikata is not a professional tennis player like him. However, as a kid, Lauren was also bitten by the tennis bug. In a Facebook post dating back to 2016, Lauren won the 2016 Polar Bear Shootout USTA L4 Junior Tennis Tournament.

Rinky and Lauren met at the University of North Carolina, where Hijikata had traveled to pursue his higher education. The young couple went public with their romance in November 2021 as the two shared a photo of them hanging out at a Country Christmas party in Pantana Bob’s Chapel Hill. 

Since then, Lauren has been captured by the flickering camera lenses while attending Ricky’s tennis matches. In July 2022, Lauren was present at the historic All England Lawn and Tennis Club to root for her boyfriend. 

She was also present on the day when Ricky played against Rafael Nadal in the US Open 2022. Lauren has shared a series of images of her tennis court rendezvous with her partner and expressed her pride over her boyfriend challenging one of the G.O.A.T of the game. 

To bring closure to a great year for their relationship as well as Rinky’s tennis season, Lauren traveled to Australia with him. Rinky and Lauren shared the images from their lunch date on their respective Instagram handle.

And it would be criminal if Lauren wouldn’t see the wildlife of Australia closely. The pair had a fun time playing with the kangaroos and ziplining. There’s no doubt Lauren will closely follow Ryan’s game against the Greek player Stefanos Tsitsipas in the ongoing Australian Open.