(Reuters) – The governing body of men’s tennis (ATP) yesterday backed the Women’s Tennis Association’s (WTA) call for China to investigate allegations of sexual assault made by Peng Shuai against a former Chinese vice premier.
The WTA had called on China to investigate Peng’s claims on Sunday, while also demanding an end to censorship of the former top-ranked doubles player.
Peng, one of China’s biggest sporting stars, alleged on her Weibo social media account on Nov. 2 that Zhang Gaoli, who used to be a member of the Politburo Standing Committee – China’s top decision-making body – coerced her into sex and they later had an on-off consensual relationship.