Peng Shuai
WTA wants China to investigate allegations by Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai
The WTA Tour on Sunday has asked the Chinese government to investigate allegations of sexual assault made by a former tennis player Peng Shuai against a former Chinese vice premier.
In a post on Chinese social media site Weibo, Peng said she was “forced” into a sexual relationship with Zhang Gaoli. However, the post was deleted later and she could provide no evidence to back her allegations.
China’s internet is heavily censored and the private lives of top leaders are an especially sensitive subject.
After the statement, WTA gave their full support to the tennis star and said:
“The recent events in China concerning a WTA player, Peng Shuai, are of deep concern. Peng Shuai, and all women, deserve to be heard, not censored.”
“Her accusation about the conduct of a former Chinese leader involving a sexual assault must be treated with the utmost seriousness.”
Zhang, 75, has not responded to the accusations levelled against him. He served as China’s vice-premier between 2013 and 2018 and was a close ally of President Xi Jinping.
Concerns among the global tennis community have grown as Peng has not been seen since the post. However, WTA Tour chairman and CEO Steve Simon said in a statement that he has received assurances from the Chinese Tennis Association that she is safe.
Peng started her journey in tennis when she was just 8. A popular coach in the tennis circuit introduced her to the game and she quickly took the sport as a profession. With her hard work and dedication she went on to become a common face in the tennis circuit.
Peng, 35, is a former World No.1 doubles player who won two Grand Slam titles – at Wimbledon in 2013 and the 2014 French Open, both alongside Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei. She also won a gold medal at the 2010 Asian Games, defeating Akgul Amanmuradova in the final.
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