Osaka is expressing concern over the “missing” Chinese tennis star Peng Shui | Tennis stories
Japanese soccer player Naomi Osaka said she was shocked to hear of her teammate who has been silent since she was falsely accused by a former Chinese government official.
The world champion and four-time winner posted on TV Wednesday to join the quiz: “Where is Peng Shuai?”
In a Twitter post – under the hashtag WhereIsPengShuai – Osaka wrote: “I don’t know if you follow the story, but I was recently informed about a fellow player who went missing as soon as he confessed to being raped. Censorship never ends.”
. #WhereIsPengShuai pic.twitter.com/51qcyDtzLq
– Naomi Osaka Naomi Osaka (@naomiosaka) November 16, 2021
Osaka, 24, who has not played in a friendly since the US Open defense ended in September, said he hoped Peng and his family were “well”.
He wrote: “I am fearful of what is happening now, and I am sending love and enlightenment.
Some of the leading players, including international men’s number one Novak Djokovic, have expressed frustration with the situation, and women and men’s tennis tour operators have called for an in-depth investigation into the claims of two Grand Slam sportsman.
Oppression reports on the case
Peng wrote in long letters earlier this month that the deputy prime minister had pressured her to have sex despite her repeated denials. The article was deleted from its official account on Weibo, China’s leading Chinese media, and Chinese state-controlled journalists have banned all reports on the matter.
Reports of the lawsuit spread overseas for more than a week with chairman and Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) chairman Steve Simon adding, “Peng Shuai, and all women, should be heard, not tested.”
“The allegations against the former Chinese leader about rape should be taken seriously.”
Andrea Gaudenzi, chairperson of the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), said the tennis officials were “deeply concerned about the uncertainty surrounding the security and where WTA players Peng Shuai”.
“We are encouraged by the recent guarantees by the WTA that they are safe and reliable and will continue to monitor the situation,” Gaudenzi said. “Individually, we support the WTA’s request for a full, fair and transparent investigation into the rape cases of Peng Shuai.”
Peng, 35, wrote that Zhang Gaoli, a former Prime Minister and a member of the Communist Party’s Politburo Standing Committee, pressured him to have sex despite repeated denials after playing tennis three years ago. He said Zhang’s wife guarded the door of the scene.
Her article also says that she had sex once seven years ago and fell in love with her afterwards.
As is customary for retired Chinese officials, 75-year-old Zhang resigned in public after retiring in 2018 and is not known for his professional or political affiliation with existing leaders.
Peng’s work
Peng won 23 tour-level two titles, including at Wimbledon in 2013 and the French Open in 2014. He was a finalist in the semifinalist at the US Open in 2014. He has not played in the top since the Qatar Open in February. 2020, pre-existing restrictions on the COVID-19 epidemic.
Peng also played in three Olympics – 2008, 2012, and 2016 – but the International Olympic Committee remained silent on his remarks. The IOC and China are preparing for the Winter Olympics in Beijing from February 4th.
His accusation was the first by a prominent government official since the #MeToo movement started in China in 2018 before he was ousted by government officials that same year.
Asked at a press conference on Monday about Peng’s remarks, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said: “I have never heard of this issue, nor is it a diplomatic question.”
Responding to another question at a daily meeting on Wednesday, Zhao said he did not know Peng’s whereabouts.
“Do you think the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman is all-powerful?” Zhao asked a reporter. “I urge you to ask the right authorities about the right question.”
