WTA pulls tennis tournaments from China over Peng Shuai’s ‘silencing by Beijing’ in wake of sexual abuse remarks
- ‘Peng Shuai is not allowed to communicate freely and has seemingly been pressured to contradict her allegation of sexual assault,’ says WTA chief Steve Simon
- He also voices concerns about the risks players and staff could face if the WTA holds events in China next year
The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) announced on Wednesday that it would suspend all of its tournaments in China, a dramatic escalation in the global reaction to Beijing’s censorship of an explosive sexual assault claim by Chinese tennis pro Peng Shuai.
“In good conscience, I don’t see how I can ask our athletes to compete [in China] when Peng Shuai is not allowed to communicate freely and has seemingly been pressured to contradict her allegation of sexual assault,” Steve Simon, the WTA’s chairman and CEO, said in a statement.
Simon said he was also concerned about the risks players and staff could face should the WTA hold events in China in 2022. The suspension, to be enacted immediately, will apply to events in Hong Kong.
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WTA suspends tournaments in China over Beijing’s ‘silencing’ of tennis pro Peng Shuai
“If powerful people can suppress the voices of women and sweep allegations of sexual assault under the rug, then the basis on which the WTA was founded – equality for women – would suffer an immense setback,” Simon said. “I will not and cannot let that happen to the WTA and its players.”
Peng, a three-time Olympian and two-time doubles Grand Slam winner, in November accused a former high-ranking Chinese official of pressuring her into sex.
The social media post in which the allegation was made was removed within minutes of being posted, while discussion and news coverage of the claims have been met with blanket censorship.
After weeks out of the public spotlight, Peng appeared in a number of photos and videos circulated by Chinese state media apparently engaging in public life, and took part in a video call with the head of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach.