Talk:Peng Shuai/Trim4

=Draft= In a video from Lianhe Zaobao and an interview with the French L'Équipe, Peng said she had not accused anyone of sexual assault, although some doubts about the circumstances were raised. She attended a meeting with IOC officials and several events at the 2022 Winter Olympics. Her appearance and references to her "accusation" remained censored within China.

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On 19 December, Singaporean Chinese-language newspaper Lianhe Zaobao published a six-minute video of its interview with Peng and provided subtitles in English. In the video, which showed her and former athletes, such as Yao Ming, reportedly at an International Ski Federation cross-country skiing event in Shanghai, Peng said that she has been "staying at home" and has "always been free". She also stated in Mandarin, "I have never said or written that anyone has sexually assaulted me, I have to clearly stress this point ... with regards to Weibo, it's about my personal privacy ... There's been a lot of misunderstanding ... There [should be] no distorted interpretation", adding that the state media translation of her November email to Simon denying allegations of sexual assault was accurate. In response to the video, the WTA released a statement saying "We remain steadfast in 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." An anonymous China watcher said in the Asia Sentinel that "the Chinese government is definitely behind Lianhe Zaobao to increase the credibility of the story. If the story was by state media, it would carry far less weight. Peng Shuai was under pressure to say what she said. We've seen this too often with the self-incrimination on TV. All these are popular tactics of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party)." Peng's apparent withdrawal of her allegation notwithstanding, the same China watcher also said that "Zhang won't be punished before the Winter Olympics in February, because it will be bad publicity for the international event", but "after the Olympics, he will be in trouble."

On February 7, 2022, Peng participated in what The Washington Post called "a carefully managed interview" with French sports newspaper L'Équipe. Accompanied by an official with the Chinese Olympic Committee, Peng announced her retirement from competitive tennis and said there had been "a huge misunderstanding" surrounding her accusation of Zhang, her disappearance from the Chinese internet, and her well-being, reiterating "I never said anyone sexually assaulted me". Peng also said the Weibo "post resulted in an enormous misunderstanding from the outside world. My wish is that the meaning of this post no longer be skewed" and claimed that she erased it. Echoing a government talking point, Peng said "I was to say first of all that emotions, sport and politics are three clearly separate things. My romantic problems, my private life, should not be mixed with sport and politics." According to Sam Phillips of the Sydney Morning Herald, this is in contrast to her Weibo post in November. French newspaper Le Monde noted that Wang Kan asked to review the questions in advance, and that the interview had to be published without any additional comments from the two journalists who interviewed Peng. L'Équipe was able to ask more question on the day with Peng than submitted beforehand. Following the interview Marc Ventouillac, one of the two interviewers, voiced his doubts about Peng Shuai's freedom and said that the interview had been part of "propaganda" efforts to downplay the issue saying "It's important, I think, for the Chinese Olympic Committee, for the Communist party and for many people in China to try to show: 'No, there is no Peng Shuai affair.'" Ventouillac also noted that Peng has appeared healthy and that they were able to ask questions beyond those originally submitted with none of the questions being censored.

Peng was reportedly seen attending several events at the 2022 Winter Olympics. She also had a meeting with Thomas Bach and other IOC officials, where Peng said she intended to travel to Europe after the COVID-19 pandemic. In regards to questions of whether Peng is speaking freely or is under duress, IOC spokesman Mark Adams said "I don't think it's for us to be able to judge, in one way, just as it's not for you to judge either." Her appearances at the Games and references to her "accusation" remain censored inside China.

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