Naomi Osaka joins a growing number of tennis players and officials asking for answers about athlete Peng Shuai, who hasn’t been seen publicly since she made sexual assault allegations against a former top official in the Chinese Communist Party.
Peng’s message on the Chinese social media platform Weibo on Nov. 2 was quickly deleted, and any online debate wasChinese officials did not respond to a request for comment earlier this month when Peng’s statement was posted, and NBC News reached out to its Foreign Ministry again Wednesday without reply. Zhang, who retired in 2018 and is no longer in the public eye, could not be reached for a response.
The Women’s Tennis Association says it has received confirmation from “several sources,” including the Chinese Tennis Association, that Peng is “safe and not under any physical threat,” its chief executive, Steve Simon,Simon said he believes Peng is in Beijing but he can’t confirm that because neither he nor any other official or player that he is aware ofTennis is one of many sports grappling with how to balance China's vast commercial opportunities with concerns about Beijing’s widely...