As the tennis world continues to demand answers on the whereabouts of missing Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai, China is now being pressured by the United Nations and the White House for information on the 35-year-old women’s doubles player.
On Friday, Liz Throssell — U.N. Human Rights spokesperson — called for proof of Peng’s “whereabouts and wellbeing.”
“What we would say is that it would be important to have proof of her whereabouts and wellbeing, and we would urge that there be an investigation with full transparency into her allegations of sexual assault,” Throssell said.
“According to available information, the former world doubles No. 1 hasn’t been heard from publicly since she alleged on social media that she was sexually assaulted. We would stress that it is important to know where she is and know her state, know about her wellbeing.”
Peng has not been seen in public since November 2 when she accused former Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli of sexually assaulting her three years ago. Her post was deleted nearly 30 minutes after publication and Peng’s Weibo account — a Chinese social media platform — is still blocked on the platform.
On Wednesday, a statement attributed to Peng was tweeted out by CGTN — a Chinese state-affiliated media company — where Peng denies her claim that Zhang sexually assaulted her.
“Hello everyone this is Peng Shuai. Regarding the recent news released on the official website of the WTA, the content has not been confirmed or verified by myself and it was released without my consent,” the statement read in part. “The news in that release, including the allegation of sexual assault, is not true. I’m not missing, nor am I unsafe. I’ve just been resting at home and everything is fine. Thank you again for caring about me.”
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the Biden administration is “deeply concerned” by Peng’s disappearance in her Friday briefing.
“We join in the calls for PRC authorities to provide independent and verifiable proof of her whereabouts and that she is safe,” Psaki told reporters.
“We know the PRC has zero tolerance for criticism and a record of silencing those that speak out and we continue to condemn those practices,” Psaki continued.
The White House is calling for Chinese authorities to provide "independent and verifiable proof" of the whereabouts and safety of tennis star Peng Shuai, who disappeared after accusing a former top official of sexually assaulting her pic.twitter.com/MWqSVPGb74
— Bloomberg Quicktake (@Quicktake) November 19, 2021
On Wednesday, WTA Chairman and CEO Steve Simon put out a statement calling the situation “concerning” following the alleged statement from Peng.
“The statement released today by Chinese state media concerning Peng Shuai only raises my concerns as to her safety and whereabouts,” the statement read.
“I have a hard time believing that Peng Shuai actually wrote the email we received or believes what is being attributed to her. Peng Shuai displayed incredible courage in describing an allegation of sexual assault against a former top official in the Chinese government.”
China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said he was “not aware of the situation” on Friday.
Joe Morgan is the Sports Reporter for The Daily Wire. Most recently, Morgan covered the Clippers, Lakers, and the NBA for Sporting News. Send your sports questions to [email protected].