IOC says its president video-chatted with missing Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai, raising more questions

China worked hard this weekend to convince the world that tennis player Peng Shuai is fine, despite concerns she hasn't been seen in the three weeks since she publicly accused a high-ranking Chinese government official of sexual assault. The International Olympic Committee got involved Sunday, saying IOC president Thomas Bach had spoken with Peng for half an hour and releasing a still photo of their video chat.
Peng "explained that she is safe and well, living at her home in Beijing, but would like to have her privacy respected at this time," the IOC said. Also on the video call were IOC Athletes Commission chair Emma Terho and Li Lingwei, a Chinese sports official and IOC board member. "I was relieved to see that Peng Shuai was doing fine, which was our main concern," Terho said in the IOC statement. "She appeared to be relaxed."
"The IOC and the Chinese government would like this to be the end of the Peng saga," The Associated Press reports. "That may be wishful thinking on their part. The interview offered few details, no follow-ups on her allegations, and invited more questions for the IOC, Peng, and China."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The Women's Tennis Association, which has threatened to pull all major events from China, was not mollified. "It was good to see Peng Shuai in recent videos, but they don't alleviate or address the WTA's concern about her well-being and ability to communicate without censorship or coercion," the WTA said. "This video does not change our call for a full, fair, and transparent investigation, without censorship, into her allegation of sexual assault, which is the issue that gave rise to our initial concern."
The IOC says its "quiet diplomacy" worked in proving that Peng is physically safe. But it's also now "actively playing a role in the Chinese government's enforced disappearance, coercion, and propaganda machinery," argues Human Rights Watch's China-born spokeswoman Yaqiu Wang. The IOC and Beijing are working closely together on the cloistered, already controversial Beijing Olympics, scheduled to begin in February.
"Although the IOC casts itself as a non-governmental organization, it's a sports business — like the WTA or NBA — that generates 91 percent of its income from sponsors and selling broadcast rights," AP notes. "The WTA is the first sports body to defiantly stand up to China's financial clout, a sharp contrast to the IOC, which says it is powerless to intervene in China's internal policies."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
The week's best photos
In Pictures A tomato fight, painting behind bars, and more
-
Mountainhead: Jesse Armstrong's tech bro satire sparkles with 'weapons-grade zingers'
The Week Recommends The Succession creator's first feature film lacks the hit TV show's 'dramatic richness' – but makes for a horribly gripping watch
-
Seeing Each Other: Portraits of Artists – a 'riveting' exhibition
The Week Recommends Pallant House exhibition offers fascinating instances of painterly reciprocity
-
Trump hits Africa, Middle East with new travel ban
Speed Read The travel ban bars visitors from 12 countries and restricts entry from seven
-
Elon Musk slams Trump's 'pork-filled' signature bill
speed read 'Shame on those who voted for it: you know you did wrong,' Musk posted on X
-
Depleted FEMA struggling as hurricane season begins
speed read FEMA has lost a third of its workforce amid DOGE cuts enforced by President Donald Trump
-
White House tackles fake citations in MAHA report
speed read A federal government public health report spearheaded by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was rife with false citations
-
Judge blocks push to bar Harvard foreign students
speed read Judge Allison Burroughs sided with Harvard against the Trump administration's attempt to block the admittance of international students
-
Trump's trade war whipsawed by court rulings
Speed Read A series of court rulings over Trump's tariffs renders the future of US trade policy uncertain
-
Elon Musk departs Trump administration
speed read The former DOGE head says he is ending his government work to spend more time on his companies
-
Trump taps ex-personal lawyer for appeals court
speed read The president has nominated Emil Bove, his former criminal defense lawyer, to be a federal judge