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Updated December 7th, 2021 at 21:09 IST

IOC president Thomas Bach says Peng Shuai being offered support 'in all areas'

International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach said in an interview that Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai has been offered support “in all areas”.

Reported by: Aanchal Nigam
IOC
(IMAGE: AP) | Image:self
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International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach said that Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai has been offered support “in all areas” after the player accused former Chinese vice premier Zhang Gaoli of sexual assault and later disappeared from the public view. Apart from the images of Peng having dinner at a restaurant and two video calls that IOC said it had with the player, the safety of the tennis star has drawn wide attention from across the globe. Peng’s case has also triggered criticism against China with World Tennis Association (WTA) pulling out from China including Hong Kong. 

In an interview with dpa international, IOC president Thomas Bach said that he is “very touched” by the conversation that took place with Peng and noted “I can only report what she is reporting. We have offered her support in all areas. You can only have a really meaningful conversation with an athlete who is in such a fragile situation if trust is built up and the public around the world is not immediately informed about its content.”

Weighing in on WTA suspending all tournaments in China, Bach said that IOC had only two options to react to Peng’s case. Bach told the media outlet, “I have described that we had two options: Either to make a public statement like the WTA or to choose our approach of direct contact. The WTA has gone its way and made its decision. Many other sports organizations have chosen a different route.”

ITF on WTA suspending games in China

While the world has ramped up criticism against China over the silencing of its tennis star Peng Shuai’s sexual assault allegations, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) has said that it will not cancel any tournament in the mainland over concerns for the player. 

In an exclusive interview with BBC Sport, ITF president David Haggerty noted that Peng’s allegations against former vice-premier of China, Zhang Gaoli of sexually assaulting her should be investigated, however, he said the organisation would not pull out from China over the issue because it does not want to “punish 1.4 billion people”. 

China’s tennis star’s safety has become a matter of global concern after she disappeared from public for at least 18 days following her 1,600-word post on social media which was removed within 30 minutes. Her allegations against Zhang have not been investigated which prompted WTA to suspend all tournaments in China including Hong Kong. 

(IMAGE: AP)
 

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Published December 7th, 2021 at 21:09 IST

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