Alize Cornet will not play in China this year: “Staying true to my convictions & careful about my health, I decided that I will not be playing in China this year. My season will therefore resume in October.”
"Staying true to my convictions": Alize Cornet first to boycott WTA return to China after Peng Shuai situation
WTAThursday, 14 September 2023 at 22:00
Alize
Cornet has announced that she will not be participating in tournaments in China
this year due to what she referred to as "my convictions" following
the Peng Shuai situation.
The return
of WTA tournaments to China did not sit well with everyone. In 2021, all
tournaments in the country were suspended after the sexual abuse allegations
made by Peng Shuai came to light.
In November
of that year, the Chinese tennis player posted an extensive message on Weibo
(similar to Facebook in China) accusing Zhang Gaoli, a former Chinese vice
premier and high-ranking member of the Chinese Communist Party, of abusing her.
The post
was deleted from the social media platform just 30 minutes later, and there
were no public sightings of Peng. The International Olympic Committee stated
three weeks later that they had spoken to the tennis player, and she had
conveyed that she was safe and well. However, at that time, it was deemed
insufficient to ensure Shuai's well-being.
In 2023 it
was announced that the WTA Tour would return to China, a country that had
previously hosted nine tournaments (the most of any country), including a
mandatory WTA 1000 event in Wuhan and the Women's Tennis Association (WTA)
Finals in Shenzhen, offering record prize money.
French
tennis player Alize Cornet recently declared that she will not be participating
in tournaments in China this year, making the announcement via her social media
channels. Cornet explained on Instagram:
"Staying
true to my convictions & careful about my health, I decided that I will not
be playing in China this year. My season will, therefore, resume in
October."
The
tournaments in China are known for offering the highest prize money for tennis
players. In fact, the ATP never suspended tournaments held in China, where a
significant portion of the tour events take place, featuring some of the
highest prize money payouts of the year.
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