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The president of the International Tennis Federation said the organization wouldn't withdraw tennis events from China over the safety concerns for tennis player Peng Shuai, despite other organizations doing so.
David Haggerty, president of ITF, told the BBC that the tennis organization would continue to hold their junior and senior events in China because they don't want to "punish a billion people" over people concerned about Peng's well-being.
Peng, a three-time Olympian, vanished from public view after making a social media post alleging former vice premier Zhang Gaoli of sexual assault. The post was quickly removed from the site after it was uploaded.
The International Olympic Committee said they had a video call with Peng to prove her well-being, and she seemed to be "doing fine." However, no physical proof has been released about the call.
Haggerty said the ITF supports women's rights and "will continue to work behind the scenes directly to bring this to resolution," he said.
Some organizations have taken a strong stance about what happened to Peng. The Women's Tennis Association suspended all tournaments in China until they could guarantee that she was safe.
Other organizations are taking less drastic measures and trying to balance between standing up for their athletes but not putting them at risk by upsetting China who is hosting the 2022 Winter Olympics.
The federation almost certainly will be compelled to take a stance on the Peng situation, especially considering its push over the last few years to put athlete safety, well-being and mental health at the fore of its considerations. As a board member, Haggerty has participated in discussion of those policies.
Furthering tensions was the White House announcement this week of a diplomatic boycott of the upcoming games to protest Chinese human rights abuses—a move that China promised to react to with "firm countermeasures."
Haggerty's role at the ITF led to his positions with the IOC and USOPC. As ITF president, he leads the organization that oversees global tennis and runs the Davis Cup and Olympic tennis tournament. Some in the global sports community had been waiting to see if the ITF would follow the lead of the Women's Tennis Association.
"But you have to remember that the ITF is the governing body of the sport worldwide, and one of the things that we are responsible for is grassroots development," he said. "We don't want to punish a billion people, so we will continue to run our junior events in the country and our senior events that are there for the time being."
The 35-year-old, former No. 1 in doubles, fell out of public view after raising the allegations about a former Chinese official in a November 2 social media post that was quickly taken down by Chinese authorities.
A number of tennis players, including Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka, have come out with statements in support of Peng.
There has been no video or transcripts of the call released and the IOC has not referenced her sexual assault allegation against a former Chinese government official. It has said its policy is to pursue "quiet diplomacy" in trying to assure Peng's well-being.
David Haggerty received an automatic spot on the USOPC board when he became a member of the International Olympic Committee in 2020.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
