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The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) decided to withdraw the tournaments in China due to the low credibility of reports on the well-being of tennis player Peng Shuai. The former world number one in doubles accused former Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli of sexual abuse, and her whereabouts were subsequently unknown for three weeks. Despite some reports that sought to convey that the athlete was well, for the WTA the Chinese authorities must investigate Peng’s complaints.
The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) announced the immediate suspension of all tournaments in China, following concerns for the safety of former world number one in doubles, Peng Shuai and de other players.
The decision entails the suspension of nine tournaments, among which are the WTA Finals, the end-of-season tournament that had been assigned to the Chinese city of Shenzhen under a 10-year contract, but which has not been disputed by the Covid-19 pandemic. The 2020 edition was postponed and the 2021 edition was moved to Guadalajara, Mexico, on time.
The suspension of tournaments in China, including Hong Kong, had the full support of the WTA Board of Directors and its members say they are not convinced that Peng is well.
“With the full support of the WTA Board of Directors, I am announcing the immediate suspension of all WTA tournaments in China, including Hong Kong.”
– wta (@WTA) December 1, 2021
WTA President Steve Simon justified the position that “I don’t see how I can ask our athletes to compete there when Peng Shuai is not allowed to communicate freely and has apparently been pressured to contradict her accusation of sexual assault.”
In addition, the governing body for women’s tennis called for a transparent investigation into Peng’s complaints. The body’s leader noted that “if powerful people can suppress women’s voices and sweep allegations of sexual assault under the rug, then the foundation on which the WTA was founded, equality for women, would suffer a huge setback. “I will not let that happen nor can I allow that to happen to the WTA and its players,” she concluded.
This decision to suspend matches in China will cost the WTA a loss of hundreds of millions of dollars between sponsorships and broadcasting rights.
The WTA had a 10-year agreement starting in 2017 with streaming platform iQiyi as its digital rights partner in China worth $ 120 million.
Furthermore, the allocation of the WTA Finals to Shenzhen in 2018 had resulted in a doubling of the prize to $ 14 million per year.
Tennis players demonstrate in favor of the WTA decision
The determination to suspend the competitions in China was applauded by several leaders of the tennis world.
Serbian Novak Djokovic, after qualifying with Serbia for the Davis Cup semifinals in Madrid, “fully” backed the WTA move. “We do not have enough information about Peng. It is a very brave move, it is important that we support each other,” he stressed.
Along these lines, former American tennis player and founder of the WTA, Billie Jean King, said that the Association “is on the right side of history.”
Likewise, the American Andy Roddick, former leader of the men’s world ranking, praised the decision and said that “doing the right thing is much easier when there are no associated costs. I am still proud to be in the orbit of tennis ”.
There are a lot of organizations who can afford to do something like this a lot more than the WTA can ……. Respect. Doing the right thing is a lot easier when there aren’t associated costs. I continue to be proud to be in the tennis orbit #PengShuai https://t.co/c5plFybz4Z
– andyroddick (@andyroddick) December 1, 2021
He was joined by compatriot Tennys Sandgren, via Twitter: “I’m beyond proud of the WTA for taking this position. Men, let’s support women, huh? Will we sit out of this or what?”
The Peng Shuai case: a high-profile complaint that endangered a Chinese sports icon
On November 2, tennis player Peng Shuai, who was also a champion of Roland Garros and Wimbledon, published a message on social networks denouncing that the former vice premier of China, Zhang Gaoli, had sexually abused her. The message was deleted after its publication half an hour later.
Neither the defendant nor the Chinese government have commented on the matter.
As of this accusation, Shuai’s whereabouts were unknown for three weeks. After that, a media outlet published photos and videos of Peng participating in a children’s tennis tournament in Beijing.
WTA President Steve Simon asked to speak to Peng by phone but the call never went through.
For his part, on November 21, the president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Thomas Bach, did manage to speak with her for 30 minutes by video call. According to the official communication, the Chinese tennis player said that she was safe and that she was with family and friends.
However, this appearance did not calm the concerns of either the WTA or various international actors for fear that Peng is being subjected to pressure from the Chinese authorities to dispel controversies.
With Reuters and EFE
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