Novak Djokovic isn’t the only one missing from this year’s Australian Open in Melbourne. Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai is also absent from a tournament where she’s played at least 15 times since 2005. But it is event organizers who, perhaps unintentionally, have shone a light on a problem many sports officials seem to wish would go away.
Two audience members were ejected from Melbourne Park over the weekend for wearing t-shirts and carrying a banner asking, “Where is Peng Shuai?” That same question has become a hashtag on social media as people around the world advocate for her safety. In November, Peng made allegations of sexual assault against a senior member of China’s ruling Communist Party, which were denied.
Peng’s circumstances have remained murky since then. All mentions of the 36-year old have been scrubbed from the internet in China, and she was later seen playing down her earlier remarks in what appeared to be a stage-managed chat with Beijing-friendly media. The Women’s Tennis Association suspended all tournaments in China while repeating calls for a full and transparent investigation into the allegations.
Tennis Australia, which administers the sport in the country and runs the local chapter of the world’s four Grand Slam tournaments, could have just ignored the two miscreants fans. TV cameras beaming the event live around the globe doubtless would have skipped over the signage and any attention they got would have been limited to a small sliver of social media. They weren’t chanting or shouting, and were only hanging out at the practice courts where there’s little television coverage.
It would have taken a complaint from someone who knows and understands the meaning of #WhereIsPengShuai for security to step in. And that’s what they did, subsequently calling in local police. “Under our ticket conditions of entry we don’t allow clothing, banners or signs that are commercial or political,” Guardian Australia cited Tennis Australia as saying.
Such guidelines are laughable. Almost every item of clothing worn by fans is emblazoned with commercial logos, and patriotic crowds often wave their national banners — the ultimate political symbol. Japan's ambassador to Australia was even pictured on social media in the stands holding his national flag. He probably wasn’t asked to leave.
But by booting those who asked a simple question — the whereabouts of someone who ought to be on the court — sports officials have once again shown an inability to understand what truly matters: the welfare of the players who keep them in business.
“I find it really, really cowardly,” tennis great Martina Navratilova told the Tennis Channel after the incident. “This is not a political statement this is a human rights statement.”
After the outcry, including an earlier version of this column, Tennis Australia softened its stance. “If someone wants to wear a t-shirt and make a statement about Peng Shuai that’s fine,” Chief Executive Officer Craig Tiley told the Herald and The Age newspapers on Tuesday, reiterating a ban on banners. “But if they come in as a mob to disrupt, that's not okay.”
Commercial interests maybe one reason for the initial heavy-handed stance — a Chinese liquor company and furniture company are among the sponsors. But that’s an oversimplification. Sports administrators want to lure sponsors, put on events, and bathe in the glory of human endeavor at its highest levels. What they don’t want are messy dealings with human rights and player welfare.
China, including state media, has downplayed Peng’s plight and called the saga another example of Western interference. And China isn’t a major revenue driver for Australian nor international tennis revenues, anyway. Still, tensions between Beijing and Canberra remain high with Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s account on Chinese messaging service WeChat appearing to have been blocked.
But athletic events shouldn’t be about placating aggrieved sponsors or sensitive government officials. Sport is about people, from the performers on the court to the crowds in the stands. When the Women’s Tennis Association stood up for Peng’s plight, it set a standard for others to follow. Tiley didn’t even need to be a trailblazer to show the same concern. All he had to do was show some compassion for a couple of t-shirt wearing fans, and the player they wanted to see, from the outset instead of waiting for a backlash.
In the end, the organizer of one of the world’s most important tennis tournaments found the light. But along the way, he got a global firestorm, heightened focus on human rights, and confirmation that sports administrators can be a little out of touch.
Bloomberg
