The Women ‘s Tennis Association (WTA) says they remain deeply concerned that former world No.1 doubles player Peng Shuai is being censored by Chinese authorities.
In a statement sent to the Associated Press on Saturday, the WTA has dismissed the authenticity of two emails which the two-time Grand Slam champion has sent to them. Saying they have suspicions that it was written under the influence of others. Both of those emails have been leaked on social media by either state-control Chinese media or by a person who claims to be a ‘long-time friend’ of hers.
Concerns over Shuai’s safety and whereabouts started on November 2nd after a post uploaded to her Weibo account accused former Vice-Premier Zhang Gaoli of sexual abuse. The post was removed within an hour of it going live and her account has since been restricted. In the couple weeks that followed Shuai wasn’t seen in public which prompted fears she had been detained by officials. In a bid to quash those concerns videos and photos of the tennis star was posted online by either journalists or media outlets which are under the control of the country’s communist party.
“Steve Simon has reached out to Peng Shuai via various communication channels,” the WTA told AP.
“He has sent her two emails, to which it was clear her responses were influenced by others. He remains deeply concerned that Peng is not free from censorship or coercion and decided not to re-engage via email until he was satisfied her responses were her own, and not those of her censors. The WTA remains concerned about her ability to communicate freely, openly, and directly.”
The only international sporting body to have spoken with Shuai since the allegations came to light have been the International Olympic Committee who held a video call with her a week ago. However, some have criticised the IOC over their approach to the matter and their subsequent statement which made no referenced to her accusations of sexual assault.
Tomas Bach, who is the president of the IOC, recently said that he was confident that the tennis star was safe and well because she gave a ‘relaxed impression’ during their video call.
“We also offered a meeting when we come in January and this video call and this 30-minutes’ conversation gave a relaxed impression we can all conclude that she is safe and well,” Bach said during an online interview with the AIPS Young Reporters group. ”But we will keep in contact and this is why we proposed to have a meeting there in January when we come to Beijing. She was telling us that she was with her family and friends and wants to be involved in her beloved sport of tennis.”
Also in attendance during the video call was Li Lingwei who is a former athlete that has since worked in various governing roles within China. This includes being a Representative of the Chinese People’s Congress (1998-2003, 2013-) and a member of the Standing Committee of the Chinese People’s Congress (2013-2018).
The WTA has threatened to pull their tournaments out of China should their concerns about Shuai’s welfare not be addressed to their satisfaction.
