Zhang Gaoli, the man whom tennis player Peng Shuai accuses of having sexually assaulted her, was also involved in a leading role in planning the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing.

The former Deputy Prime Minister, a member of the Standing Committee of the Politburo, was also the head of the “Central Leadership Group for Work on the 24th Winter Olympics” of the Chinese Communist Party.

Christoph Becker

Sports editor.

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As early as December 15, 2015, the organizing committee of the games, which had been awarded to Beijing on July 31, was presented by the then permanent member of the State Council.

At least once, on June 12, 2016, Zhang Gaoli met with Thomas Bach, President of the International Olympic Committee, in Beijing.

The Chinese government also regularly reported about Zhang Gaoli's outstanding work in the winter games until the end of his political career in 2018, for example about his inspection trip to the competition sites in Zhangjiakou in December 2017 or when the Chinese Olympic team was received after their return from the winter games in Pyeongchang 2018.

Peng Shuai, formerly number one in the double world rankings, claimed in a post about three weeks ago that Zhang Gaoli had sexually abused her.

The post was immediately censored and Peng disappeared from the public eye.

After the women's tennis organization WTA threatened to withdraw from China without adequate clarification of the case, Peng's return was staged in channels of the Chinese state media.

On Sunday, Thomas Bach, President of the International Olympic Committee, spoke to Peng on a video call that was also attended by Li Lingwei, political cadre and Vice President of the National Olympic Committee of China.

Bach's role and the sparse information about the content of the conversation met with criticism from around the world.

Bach and the IOC are accused of making themselves the stooge of the Chinese dictatorship.

When asked by the FAZ whether Bach's meeting with Zhang Gaoli was mentioned in the phone call with Peng, the IOC did not answer.

It is "common knowledge" that IOC representatives "meet regularly with their contact persons" whose task it is to contribute to the success of the games.