Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai denies accusing official of sexual assault in new interview

Peng Shuai, the Chinese tennis star, has denied that she accused a former official of sexually assaulting her as she gave what is thought to be her first media interview since the controversy erupted in November.

Speaking to the Singapore newspaper Lianhe Zaobao, the player denied making the accusation, apparently contradicting a message she had posted on 2 November on Weibo, a Chinese social media site.

"First, I need to stress one point that is extremely important, I have never said or written that anyone has sexually assaulted me, I have to clearly stress this point," Peng said in the interview.

She also said there had been "misunderstandings" about her original post but she did not explain further, raising questions as to whether she was speaking under duress.

There had been widespread concerns about Peng's well-being after her Weibo essay was removed from the site just half an hour after it was posted.

After that, she was absent from public view for several weeks, which prompted the high-profile tennis stars Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams to demand information about her whereabouts and reassurance that she was safe.

The essay had alleged that Zhang Gaoli, a former Chinese vice premier, had sexually assaulted Peng.

Her remarks on Sunday marked the first time she had addressed the matter on camera in public, while speaking on the sidelines of a cross-country skiing event in Shanghai that she attended.

Peng added that her post on Weibo, a website which is similar to Twitter, was a "private matter" and that "people have many misunderstandings" about her post, but did not elaborate further.

She also said that she had been living at home in Beijing without supervision and made no mention of Zhang, who has not yet commented on the matter.

Early this month, the Women's Tennis Association (WTA), which has sought a direct line of communication with Peng, said it would suspend tournaments over concerns about her welfare.

The WTA did not immediately react to Peng's comments.

China has not directly commented on Peng's initial post, but said after the WTA's move to suspend tournaments in China that it "opposes the politicisation of sports".

Discussion of the scandal, which emerged as Beijing prepares to stage the Winter Olympics in February, has been heavily censored in China.

Peng also said in the video posted on Sunday that she had personally written a letter last month to WTA head Steve Simon, in which she denied making the allegation of assault, and that an English translation of it by Chinese state media was accurate.

The letter to Mr Simon, Peng said, was sent “entirely on my own volition”

Mr Simon had said at the time that he "had a hard time believing" that Peng had actually written the email or believed what had been attributed to her.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has held two video calls with the 35-year-old Peng.

At the Shanghai event on Sunday, Peng appeared on a fifth floor viewing balcony with athletes from various sports, including former NBA basketball star Yao Ming, and watched for about 20 minutes, according to the Lianhe Zaobao report. She wore a black jacket with a China flag and a red T-shirt with the characters for China.

Video footage of Peng was posted online on Sunday by a journalist for the state-owned newspaper Global Times. The seven-second clip showed her in conversation with two other people.

“A friend sent me this video showing Chinese tennis star player Peng Shuai [speaking] with Yao Ming, one of the most beloved players in @NBA history, this morning at an event ‘FIS Cross-Country Skiing China City Tour’ in Shanghai,” wrote Qingqing Chen, the Global Times reporter, alongside the video.