In a particularly virulent statement, WTA President Steve Simon announced a strong measure of his authority and called on "world leaders" to follow him.

"I am announcing the immediate suspension of all WTA tournaments in China, including Hong Kong. In good conscience, I do not see how I can ask our athletes to participate in tournaments when Peng Shuai is not allowed. to communicate freely and has, it seems, been pressured to reverse his allegations of sexual abuse, "writes Steve Simon.

He added that he was "very worried about the risks that all our players and staff would take if we organize tournaments in China in 2022 (...) The leaders of China have left no choice to the WTA".

WTA President Steve Simon at a press conference in Singapore on October 26, 2016 ROSLAN RAHMAN AFP / Archives

World tennis No.1 Novak Djokovic, still in the Davis Cup race, gave his full support from Madrid on Wednesday evening.

“I fully support the position of the WTA because we don't have enough information about Shuai Peng,” he said.

Billie Jean King, 12 times Grand Slam singles champion, also welcomed the approach.

“I applaud Steve Simon and the @WTA leadership for taking a strong stand on human rights advocacy in China and around the world,” she tweeted.

Call to leaders

No WTA tournament was scheduled until the end of the year and the 2022 schedule has yet to be released.

During the 2019 season, the last not to have been impacted by the Covid-19, 10 tournaments were organized in China, including the end-of-year women's Masters which, with $ 14 million, had been better endowed financially. than their male counterparts.

“The WTA will do everything possible to protect its players,” said Simon. “I hope world leaders continue to stand up for justice for Peng and all women, regardless of the financial consequences. . "

Peng Shuai, 35, disappeared a few days in November after posting a long message on Chinese social network Weibo in which she accused ex-Deputy Prime Minister Zhang Gaoli, 40 years her senior and since retired, of the having sexually abused before making her his mistress.

Combophoto showing tennis player Peng Shuai and Chinese politician Zhang Gaoli Paul CROCK, Alexander ZEMLIANICHENKO AFP / Archives

Many stars of world tennis, from Chris Evert to Djokovic already, and several Western countries, notably France and the United States, but also the European Union and the UN, have asked Beijing to clarify the fate of Peng Shuai .

The young woman reappeared on November 21 in a restaurant in Beijing and during a tennis tournament held in the Chinese capital, according to videos published by official media.

"Serious doubts"

She also said during a videoconference with the President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Thomas Bach, to be "safe and sound at her home in Beijing" but that she "would like her privacy to be respected".

Chinese Olympic Committee member Li Lingwei participated in the video conference.

"Even though we now know Peng's whereabouts, I have serious doubts that she is free, safe, and not subject to censorship, coercion or intimidation," Steve Simon said Wednesday.

“Chinese leaders have had opportunities to lift censorship, to verifiably prove that Peng was free and able to speak out without outside interference or intimidation, and to conduct a full, fair and transparent investigation into his accusations of sexual abuse ", he adds, regretting that Beijing has not" acted in a credible way ".

Beijing's only official reaction to date has been a call by Chinese diplomacy spokesman Zhao Lijian on November 23 to "stop deliberately blaming this issue for hostile ends, especially make a political question ".

“None of this is acceptable and never will be. If the powerful can suppress the voices of women and sweep charges of sexual abuse under the rug, then the foundations upon which the WTA is built - equality for women - I can't let that happen to the players and I won't let it, "insists Steve Simon.

Among the first to react to this decision of the president of the WTA, the Czech Petra Kvitova had tweeted an applauding emoji, while the French Alizé Cornet wrote "What a leader!".

Ex-world No. 1 Andy Roddick underlined the risk taken by the WTA boss: "Acting well is much easier when it costs nothing. Respect."

"The WTA has stood firm and true to its values ​​from the start and we understand their decision," the International Federation (ITF) told AFP.

© 2021 AFP