Tennis/Peng Shuai case: "We're willing to pull our business from China" (Steve Simon, WTA)

"We're definitely willing to pull our business (from China) and deal with all the complications that come with it. Because this (tennis player Peng Shuai's sexual assault allegations against a senior Chinese Communist Party official) is certainly bigger than the business," said Steve Simon, chairman of the WTA, to CNN on 18/11/2021.

The tennis world has been without any "real" news regarding Peng Shuai since she accused former Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli of sexually assaulting her on 02/11/2021 via a message on the Chinese platform Weibo, which was removed thirty minutes after it was posted (her account has been blocked since).

On 18/11/2021, Steve Simon questioned the authenticity of an email sent to the WTA, in which the player amends her accusations against the Chinese leader. "I have a hard time believing that Peng Shuai actually wrote the email we received or believes what is being attributed to her," said the head of the WTA in a statement.

At stake for the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) is the maintenance of its lucrative tour of China cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to the…