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WTA Won’t Hold Events In China Until Peng Shuai Situation Is Resolved

WTA Won’t Hold Events In China Until Peng Shuai Situation Is Resolved

The Women’s Tennis Association will continue not to play in China during 2022 until the Peng Shuai situation is resolved.

In December, the WTA canceled nine events scheduled for the fall of 2022 in China and Hong Kong due to the uncertain status of the Chinese tennis star. That followed an announcement in July that the fall Asian swing would be canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We remain dedicated to finding a resolution to this,” WTA CEO Steve Simon told The Tennis Podcast.

“We want to find a resolution that Peng can be comfortable with, the Chinese government can be comfortable with, and we can be comfortable with.

“We are not about walking away from China. We have suspended our operations there right now. We will continue to do that until we get to a resolution.

“We will stay resolute. We do hope to be back there in 2023 with the resolution that shows progress was made in the space. That’s a victory for the world if we can accomplish that.”

Jon Wertheim of The Tennis Channel Tweeted that the WTA calendar “will run through Japan and Seoul” in the fall following the U.S. Open with “no events in China.” He added that “at least half the cancelled China events have found hosts for 2022 (including San Diego).”

The WTA Finals are “likely” to be held in Europe, not in Mexico where they were held in November 2021.

Peng, a three-time Olympian and grand slam doubles champion, alleged last November that she was sexually assaulted by China’s former Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli. The Chinese government deleted her post on the social media site Weibo, as well as her account.

Peng, who had already effectively retired from professional tennis, made an appearance at the Winter Olympics in Beijing in February and denied she had accused anyone of sexual assault, adding that she herself had deleted the social media post.

The WTA, however, stuck to its demand for a formal investigation into Peng’s allegations and an opportunity to meet with her privately to discuss the situation.

“We have not had any recent communication with Peng and the world has not seen Peng since the Olympics either,” Simon said.

“I don’t think you will make change in this world by walking away from issues. You have to create change.

“It might not be everything we want. But we have to find a solution that finds that balance that allows us to go back and see progress in the area.”

Winston Lord, former U.S. Ambassador to China, called the WTA “courageous,” especially in comparison with the NBA, which still does business in China.

“The decision by Steve Simon and his Board of Directors to suspend operations in China is the most courageous move on human rights that I can recall any sports organization making,” Lord, former U.S. Ambassador to China and former member of the WTA Global Advisory Council, wrote in an email in December.

“The proportionate financial stakes of the WTA in China dwarf those of the cowardly NBA and other sports groups. I hope, but do not expect, this step will serve to shame and galvanize other organizations and businesses to counter the economic intimidation and political bullying of China.”

(Reuters contributed reporting)

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Olympics Live Updates: Peng Shuai Meets With I.O.C. President

Olympics Live Updates: Peng Shuai Meets With I.O.C. President
Credit…Chang W. Lee/The New York Times

After finishing a disappointing 14th in the 5,000-meter speedskating race at the 2018 Olympics, Nils van der Poel did not skate again for almost two years. He barely even trained, in fact. Instead, he joined the Swedish army and became an ultramarathon runner, among other pursuits.

And then he came back. Van der Poel won the 5,000-meter race Sunday night in 6 minutes 8.84 seconds, an Olympic record. His gold medal-winning performance came a year after he set two world records, and he is a heavy favorite to win gold in the 10,000 meters on Friday.

After his victory, van der Poel spoke at length about his unusual training plan and where he finds the motivation needed to be an elite athlete.

How are you setting world records while also not living, eating, breathing speedskating?

When you are a professional athlete in a sport that sucks as much as speedskating sucks, you’ve got to find a way to make it suck a little less. And whatever you can get inspired by, you need to find that.

Perhaps the guy who trains the most wins. Perhaps it’s like that. It is pretty likely. So what do you have to bribe yourself with to train more than the others? If you can find the answer to that, perhaps you can win the Olympics.

What is the answer for you?

So I did like 20 ultras. One thousand sky dives. I served in the army for a year. I did a lot of parties. I went snowboarding a lot. I did a lot of ski mountaineering. I biked the entire Sweden.

All since 2018?

Not all of it, but most of it.

So it was like, I had to make it adventurous, because I knew there would come a time when it wouldn’t be adventurous no more, when I would lock myself up in Inzell* for two months just going for it. But I knew if I wanted to endure that, I had to, like, build up a mountain of motivation because I’m going to need that motivation one day.

*Inzell is a German town where many speedskaters train.

You can’t do speedskating day after day?

I don’t think so, no. No. It is too monotonous to me.

I love it. I really love this sport. More than most things. But if you’re going to train as much as it’s needed, you’ve got to, you’ve got to love it, man. And if you want to keep loving it, I mean, you’ve got to work for it. It is like a relationship. It doesn’t come to you. It doesn’t become perfect. You’ve got to work for it.

I think the mistake I made when I was younger was that I didn’t work for my motivation. I expected my motivation to be there. It’s not. It’s not going to be there. You’ve got to chase it. A lot harder than you chase your opponents. You’ve got to chase your motivation.

Because what if you wake up and you want to train? What if that happens every day? Perhaps you will be the one who trains the most.

Is this your last season?

I’ve been trying to quit two times and I haven’t succeeded. I don’t think I’ll succeed this time either. Maybe.