The first Chinese tennis player and head of the WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) has provided reason to feel ambiguous about an email delivered by Chinese state media ascribed to tennis player Peng Shuai.
Peng Shuai,35- is a famous Chinese tennis player. She has won two Grand Slams at Wimbledon, (London) in 2013 and the 2014 French Open.
In the email, Ms Peng purportedly says the charges are “false”.
Steve Simon- administrator of the WTA, said the message “just raises” his interests about Ms Peng’s safety.
He also said in an assertion, that “I struggle accepting that Peng Shuai really composed the email we got or trusts what is being ascribed to her.”
Written in her voice and distributed by the telecaster CGTN, the email claims she isn’t missing or unsafe, adding: “I’ve recently been resting at home and all is fine.”
Ms Peng – a previous number one-positioned tennis doubles player – had not been heard from since posting a claim about previous Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli on Chinese online media website Weibo.
She affirmed she was “forced” into sexual relationships with Mr Zhang – who was country’s Vice Premier in 2013- 2018 and was a nearby partner of China’s chief Xi Jinping, in a post that was subsequently brought down. She has not been seen or heard from openly since.
The WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) and driving voices from the world of tennis have progressively taken a stand in opposition to Ms Peng since.
In recent weeks, Novak Djokovic- world’s number one male tennis player, said he trusted she was OK, adding that he was stunned, while Naomi Osaka voiced worries about Ms Peng’s whereabouts.
Reacting to the email distributed on Wednesday, WTA chair Steve Simon said the email he got “just raises my interests regarding her security and whereabouts”.
He likewise repeated that her sexual assault claim should be fully researched “with full transparency and without censorship”.
Her allegation is the most prominent incident in China’s Fledgling #MeToo Movement. It comes only months before China has the Winter Olympics.
#MeToo Movement- was a feminist movement in China that pushed for women’s equality and inclusion. The campaign brought attention to the issue of sexual violence and rape in China.
She hasn’t been found in public nor heard from in weeks. Now in sudden an email shows up and the language seems dismissive.
The picture delivered by the state-controlled TV network CGTN has all the earmarks of screenshot. All of which has raised quick doubts about its credibility.
Prominent People do vanish from view in China. In some cases, it’s tycoon businessman. It’s not normally athletes.
Sporting success, as Ms Peng’s, has turned into a critical part of the decision Communist Party’s soft power push. That is, in any case, yet to incorporate a #MeToo moment.
