TENNIS STARS threw their support behind the WTA’s move to suspend its tournaments in China over concern for Peng Shuai, as calls grew on Thursday for other sports organisations to take action.
The women’s tennis tour made the decision over what its chairman called enduring “serious doubts” about the safety of Chinese player Peng, who accused a former Communist Party leader of sexual assault.
Women’s Tennis Association chair and CEO Steve Simon reiterated his calls for China to conduct “a full and transparent investigation – without censorship” into Peng’s claim that former vice-premier Zhang Gaoli “forced” her into sex.
The WTA’s move to suspend its tournaments in China, including Hong Kong, won the immediate backing of some of the biggest names in tennis, among them men’s number one Novak Djokovic and women’s tour founder Billie Jean King.
It could potentially cost the WTA hundreds of millions of dollars because China is one of its biggest markets.
Djokovic called the WTA’s stance “very bold and very courageous”, while 12-time Grand Slam singles winner King tweeted that the WTA “is on the right side of history.”
Tennis great Martina Navratilova directly challenged the International Olympic Committee to respond, writing on Twitter that “so far I can barely hear you!!!”
China will host the Beijing Winter Olympics in February.
The Chinese Tennis Association on Thursday expressed “indignation and firm opposition” to the WTA’s announcement, state-owned newspaper Global Times reported.
And Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said the country was “firmly opposed to acts politicising sport,” in a brief response to reporters.
- ‘Serious doubts’ -
The 35-year-old Peng, a Wimbledon and French Open doubles champion, has been at the centre of international concern for the past month.
She was not seen for weeks following her allegations on the Twitter-like Weibo platform that Zhang, now in his 70s, coerced her into sex during a years-long on-off relationship.
Her allegations, posted on November 2, were quickly scrubbed from the internet in China and online discussions about them remain censored. There has been no response from Zhang.
The WTA’s boycott prompted further censorship on the Chinese internet, with comments on some of the organisation’s Weibo posts deleted and its account blocked from the site’s search function.
The Global Times on Thursday accused the WTA in an editorial posted only on Twitter of putting on “an exaggerated show” and “forcing (Peng) to complain in accordance with the imagination and expectations of Western public opinion.”
Peng’s claims against Zhang were the first time China’s #MeToo movement has touched the highest echelons of the ruling Communist Party.
State media have pointed to an email attributed to Peng and photos of her at a Beijing tennis event as evidence of her safety.
She also participated in a video call on November 21 with IOC president Thomas Bach, which drew criticism.
The uncertainty over Peng has reignited calls for a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Games over China’s human rights record.
“In good conscience, I don’t see how I can ask our athletes to compete there when Peng Shuai is not allowed to communicate freely and has seemingly been pressured to contradict her allegation of sexual assault,” Simon said in the statement announcing the WTA’s decision.
Simon said that he still had “serious doubts that she is free, safe, and not subject to censorship, coercion, and intimidation.”
The European Union, the United Nations, the United States and Britain all have called for proof of Peng’s whereabouts and well-being.
Beijing has remained mostly tight-lipped, saying the situation surrounding Peng has been “maliciously hyped up.”
- Millions of dollars -
Next year’s WTA schedule had not yet been announced, but China looks unlikely to be hosting major international sport — except the Olympics — any time soon because of its strict coronavirus policies.
In 2019, China hosted 10 WTA events with total prize money topping $30 million.
Speaking on CNN, Simon said he had been unable to contact Peng directly despite multiple attempts.
Asked if the WTA had been contacted by any corporate sponsors of the Olympics or other sports with big business in China, such as the NBA, Simon said: “We haven’t heard from the partners involved in the Olympics and other properties involved in China.
“Our position here is very, very clear: I can only imagine the range of emotions and feelings that are likely going through Peng right now.
“We hope that she feels that none of this is her fault and that we’re very proud of her.”
I’d love to see mayo win it out the really deserve it just have to keep the egos under control by the looks of things
@Jamie: sure you have no interest in gaelic football you continually slag it off on here.
@dead right: the only thing he slags off more than gaa is mayo gaa!
@Dec: and dublin bitter little cavan man
Ah boys yee are all in fierce bad form tonight
@Jamie: Mayo deserve nothing more than the pain they are suffering, they are somehow egotistical and arrogant dispite their constant failures. Dublin and Kerry will see to it that they fail again this year.
@dead right: And no true GAA fan could consiously support mayo. Dublin are disliked by some but have to be respected as Champions. Mayo on the other hand have no respect.
@SYM-Metal: jaysus paul scanlon would you have a night off. you get slagged off by everyone here, even those that aren’t mayo fans!! keep changing your handle but its obvious from how you talk. do us all a favour and write “i hate mayo” a hundred times on your bedroom wall and save us from having to read your muck on here. cheers lad
Mayo were absolutely brutal today. They are a serious team in decline. Outside of durkan and parsons not one would get in a Dublin or Kerry team. Unfortunately they had their chance. As a Dublin person it’s Kerry’s to lose
@Bill Clay: insert year here.
@Bill Clay: Stop commenting. You’re an embarrassment.
Yawn. If they had won by 30 points you’d no doubt be claiming “Typical Mayo. Peaking too early. Championships aren’t won in May or June”.
Tough game against galway next. But would love to beat the rossies in the final. I suppose paul scanlon has changed his name again
@stephen keane: He shut up as soon as Ross were relegated. Very peaceful :)
Cillian o Connor is the greatest waste of time….gloryhole if I ever see one
@Brian Shaw: Without the constant soft fees he gets, mayo wouldn’t score at all.
If Sligo weren’t so negative they could have taken them, seems like Sligo’s main ambition in this game was not to get slaughtered like they did two years ago.
@Tomas Rooney: You have to defend and attack to get anywhere, we’re just not good enough, but I’d have no issues with the game plan, your lines are taken directly from the gobs of O’Rourke and Spillane who are bags of wind, we played some decent stuff in the second half but Mayo have better players, don’t really see where the negativity was, we tried to work the ball up the field and were smart enough to get men defending when they needed them, Mayo were just better at taking there shots, some people want 30 headless chickens running around the field