Former doubles world No 1 Peng Shuai said in a social media post in November that she was forced to have sex with former vice-premier Zhang Gaoli; her post was swiftly deleted and her subsequent silence raised fears over her safety
Tuesday 8 February 2022 07:42, UK
Peng Shuai has made an appearance at the Winter Olympics after reports she accused a high-ranking Chinese official of sexual assault as a "huge misunderstanding".
The former doubles world No 1 said in a social media post in November that she was forced to have sex with former vice-premier Zhang Gaoli. Her post was swiftly deleted and her subsequent silence raised fears over her safety.
In an interview published on Monday with the French newspaper L'Equipe, during which she was accompanied by Chinese Olympic Committee chief of staff Wang Kan who translated her responses, Peng insisted she had been unaware of the global concern.
The interview was released at the same time as a statement by the International Olympic Committee, which confirmed Peng had had dinner on Saturday with its president Thomas Bach and the former chair of the IOC Athletes' Commission, Kirsty Coventry.
Peng was on hand on Tuesday to watch China's Eileen Gu as she won gold in the Big Air competition in Beijing to put the host nation at the top of the medals table at the Winter Olympics.
Peng could be seen in the stands wearing a black knit hat with the Olympic rings on them and a black coat with the Chinese flag.
"I just met her, she was here sitting in the stadium," said Bach.
"She was among the athletes, and I had the opportunity to meet with a number of athletes from Switzerland and from Germany and the US."
"She was sitting there and we had the opportunity to talk and now she has to go to the quarantine, she told me, she will leave now the closed loop," Bach said.
The Women's Tennis Association said its concerns over Shuai had not been alleviated by the interview.
WTA chairman and chief executive Steve Simon said in a statement: "It's always good to see Peng Shuai, whether in an interview or attending the Olympic Games.
"However, her recent in-person interview does not alleviate any of our concerns about her initial post from November 2.
"To reiterate our view, Peng took a bold step in publicly coming forth with the accusation that she was sexually assaulted by a senior Chinese government leader.
"As we would do with any of our players globally, we have called for a formal investigation into the allegations by the appropriate authorities and an opportunity for the WTA to meet with Peng - privately - to discuss her situation.
"We continue to hold firm on our position and our thoughts remain with Peng Shuai."
In the interview with L'Equipe, Peng said: "I never said anyone had sexually assaulted me in any way.
"There was a huge misunderstanding in the outside world following this post. I don't want the meaning of this post to be twisted anymore. And I don't want any further media hype around it.
"I never disappeared. Everyone could see me. I never disappeared. It's just that many people, like my friends or people from the IOC messaged me, and it was simply impossible to answer so many messages. But I've been always in close contact with my close friends."
Peng's predicament sparked a global call for transparency led by the WTA, which announced in December the suspension of all tournaments in China due to its dissatisfaction with the response to the allegation from the Chinese authorities.
Bach was criticised for steering the IOC down a less confrontational approach, instead pursuing a meeting with Peng, the details of which the organisation said would only be released at Peng's discretion.
She also accepted an invitation to visit IOC headquarters in Lausanne.
The IOC said: "During the dinner, the three spoke about their common experience as athletes at the Olympic Games, and Peng Shuai spoke of her disappointment at not being able to qualify for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.
"In this context, she also shared her intention to travel to Europe when the Covid-19 pandemic is over, and the IOC president invited her to Lausanne to visit the IOC and The Olympic Museum, to continue the conversation on their Olympic experiences. Peng Shuai accepted this invitation."
