Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai has finally appeared in public. But here's why the worries aren't going away
Almost as abruptly as she had vanished, Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai reappeared in public view over the weekend.
Since Friday evening, a steady stream of photos and videos purporting to show a smiling Peng going about her life in Beijing have surfaced on Twitter -- all posted by individuals working for Chinese government-controlled media and the state sport system, on a platform blocked in China.
The apparent propaganda push was followed Sunday by a video call between Peng and International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach, during which the three-time Olympian insisted she is "safe and well, living at her home in Beijing" and "would like to have her privacy respected," according to a statement from the IOC.
The flurry of "proof of life" videos came amid a firestorm of global concern for Peng, who disappeared from the public eye for more than two weeks after taking to social media to accuse former Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli of coercing her into sex at his home -- an explosive and politically sensitive allegation that triggered blanket censorship in China.
While Peng's public reappearances may allay some of the worst fears about her immediate safety and well-being, they have failed to quell broader concerns about her freedoms and growing calls for a full investigation into her sexual assault allegations.
"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," a spokesperson for the Women's Tennis Association (
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