Confusion grows over Peng Shuai assault allegations

Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai is now claiming she never accused now-retired vice premier of China Zhang Gaolia of sexual assault.

Speaking this weekend to a reporter from a Singapore-based Chinese publication, Peng’s comments only seem to muddy the quest to learn the truth of her welfare. In an early November posting on her Weibo account, Peng maintained she was the victim of non-consensual sex with the official.

The posting was removed less than 20 minutes later, but not before being seen across the world, igniting concern for the safety and welfare of the three-time Olympian and Wimbledon doubles champion.

“People seemed to have made a lot of misinterpretations,” Peng said in Chinese in the video. Her comments were her first attesting to the authenticity of the Weibo posting that was removed.

“First, I want to stress a very important point — I never said or wrote that anyone sexually assaulted me. There may have been misunderstandings by everyone,” she said in the interview. The six-minute interview by the Singapore media outlet, which is regarded as pro-China, was the first from her since the November Weibo posting.

Peng further dismissed notions that she was being kept away from public contact. She insisted she was free to leave China at any time, but preferred to stay home.

“I have nothing to prove,” Peng says on the video,

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has conducted two on-line meetings with Peng but has not made recordings or transcripts available. IOC President Thomas Bach says Peng has assured the IOC she is safe and requested privacy. Bach is supposed to meet with Peng in Beijing next month ahead of the 2022 Winter Olympic Games.

Peng was also seen on video, recorded this weekend in Shanghai, where she attended a ski event with retired NBA star Yao Ming. The two athletes are seen chatting, Yao towering above Peng.

The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA), which has unsuccessfully sought to contact Peng, issued a statement restating the association’s desire to contact Peng directly.

“We remain steadfast in our call for a full, fair and transparent investigation, without censorship, into her allegation of sexual assault, which is the issue that gave rise to our initial concern,” the WTA said in a statement.

“As we have consistently stated, these appearances do not alleviate or address the WTA’s significant concerns about her well-being and ability to communicate without censorship or coercion.”

The WTA organizes the global calendar for women’s professional tennis, and has cancelled its events in China for 2021 as a result of the Peng controversy.