At least one professional sports league is finally standing up to communist China.
TheBlaze reports that the World Tennis Association (WTA) is threatening to pull its tournaments from China over the mysterious — and sinister — disappearance of tennis star Peng Shuai.
Bizarre backstory
Shuai is the former top-ranked women’s doubles player. Tragically, according to ESPN, she has gone missing.
The tennis star was last seen on Nov. 2, shortly after she claimed that three years ago she was forced to have sexual relations with former Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli at his residence. She made the claim online, and shortly after, it was announced that the Chinese government censored the bombshell post.
Since then, Shuai has been missing. Steve Simon, the WTA president, is reported to have received a letter from Shuai in which she recanted her allegation and claimed that she was safe, but the authenticity of the mysterious letter has been called into question, especially considering that Shuai has still not been seen.
The Chinese government has essentially played dumb throughout the ordeal, and recently claimed that it is “not aware” of the situation with Shuai’s questionably timed and sudden disappearance.
Strong backlash
Shuai’s disappearance has elicited a strong response from the general public. And, unlike other sport’s leagues, such as the National Basketball Association (NBA), some of tennis’ top stars have spoken out, including the legendary Serena Williams.
In addition, the World Tennis Association is also taking strong action, with Simon threatening to pull events from China over Shuai’s disappearance.
Simon, on behalf of the WTA, is calling for a credible investigation into Shuai’s disappearance, and it was noted that if the communist Chinese fail to comply, he’ll follow through on his threat.
“We’re definitely willing to pull our business and deal with all the complications that come with it,” Simon said. “Because this is certainly, this is bigger than the business. Women need to be respected and not censored.”
A tale of two leagues
The difference between the WTA and the NBA on this particular issue strikes a great contrast. Despite communist China’s abuses, NBA stars have refused to speak out against the regime for fear of losing money and other lucrative business perks.
However, the World Tennis Association is willing to do what’s right and put money aside, which is refreshing.
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