{"id":1235619,"date":"2022-01-24T13:55:22","date_gmt":"2022-01-24T18:55:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1235619"},"modified":"2022-01-24T13:55:39","modified_gmt":"2022-01-24T18:55:39","slug":"i-find-it-really-really-cowardly-martina-navratilova-rips-australian-open-for-asking-fans-to-remove-where-is-peng-shuai-t-shirts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/i-find-it-really-really-cowardly-martina-navratilova-rips-australian-open-for-asking-fans-to-remove-where-is-peng-shuai-t-shirts\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018I Find It Really, Really Cowardly\u2019: Martina Navratilova Rips Australian Open For Asking Fans To Remove \u2018Where Is Peng Shuai\u2019 T-Shirts"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">42<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fi-find-it-really-really-cowardly-martina-navratilova-rips-australian-open-for-asking-fans-to-remove-where-is-peng-shuai-t-shirts%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1235619&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Eighteen-time Grand Slam winner Martina Navratilova laid into the Australian Open on Sunday, following reports that Tennis Australia forced fans of the Australian Open to remove t-shirts with the words \u201cWhere is Peng Shuai.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSports has always been at the forefront of social issues, pushing them forward,\u201d Navratilova said on Sunday. \u201cAnd we are going backwards, uphill. We\u2019ve had the issue with Peng Shuai, \u2018Where is Peng Shuai.\u2019 And now, there were fans at the tournament watching \u2014 at a practice, they weren\u2019t even on the main court \u2014&nbsp; they had \u2018Where is Peng Shuai\u2019 on their t-shirt and they were told to cover it up. And the Australian Open issued a proclamation that\u2019s just not acceptable. I find it really, really cowardly. This is not a political statement. This is a human rights statement.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think they\u2019re wrong on this,\u201d Navratilova added.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">WTA fall tournaments in China remain up in the air and updates on Peng Shuai continue to raise concern. <\/p>\n<p>Stream live \u2192 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/tPoe44TDv0\">https:\/\/t.co\/tPoe44TDv0<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/TCLive?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#TCLive<\/a> l <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/AusOpen?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#AusOpen<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/RPi7ZwQkpc\">pic.twitter.com\/RPi7ZwQkpc<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TennisChannel\/status\/1485375729063936003?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">January 23, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<p>According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/tennis\/story\/_\/id\/33126848\/australian-open-officials-ask-fans-remove-t-shirts-slogan-where-peng-shuai\">ESPN<\/a>, video of security asking the fans to remove the t-shirts was uploaded to TikTok, where officials can be heard saying that \u201cpolitical slogans\u201d are not allowed at the Australian Open.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cUnder our ticket conditions of entry we don\u2019t allow clothing, banners or signs that are commercial or political,\u201d a Tennis Australia spokesperson <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/sport\/2022\/jan\/23\/tennis-australia-says-peng-shuais-safety-its-primary-concern-despite-banning-t-shirtssupporting-chinese-player\">told<\/a> Guardian Australia. \u201cPeng Shuai\u2019s safety is our primary concern. We continue to work with the WTA and global tennis community to seek more clarity on her situation and will do everything we can to ensure her wellbeing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Peng\u2019s safety has been a concern since her November 2nd social media post in which she accused former Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli of sexually assaulting her three years ago following a round of tennis. She also said Zhang\u2019s wife guarded the door. Her post was deleted nearly 30 minutes after publication and Peng\u2019s account on Weibo \u2014 a Chinese social media platform \u2014 was blocked from searchers on the platform.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Peng was not seen or heard from publicly until a November 17 statement attributed to Peng was shared on Twitter by CGTN \u2014 a Chinese state-affiliated media company \u2014 where Peng denied her claim that Zhang sexually assaulted her.<\/p>\n<p>The IOC has held two calls with Peng, including a December 2nd call that \u201creconfirmed\u201d that Peng appeared to be \u201cappeared to be safe and well.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Shortly after the second call with the IOC, the Women\u2019s Tennis Association announced a suspension of all WTA tournaments in China, including in Hong Kong.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cUnfortunately, the leadership in China has not addressed this very serious issue in any credible way,\u201d WTA CEO Steve Simon <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wtatennis.com\/news\/2384758\/steve-simon-announces-wta-s-decision-to-suspend-tournaments-in-china\">wrote<\/a> in a statement to the WTA website. \u201cWhile we now know where Peng is, I have serious doubts that she is free, safe and not subject to censorship, coercion and intimidation. The WTA has been clear on what is needed here, and we repeat our call for a full and transparent investigation \u2013 without censorship \u2013 into Peng Shuai\u2019s sexual assault accusation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Navratilova lauded the WTA for their approach to Peng\u2019s safety, once again ripping Tennis Australia for their stance.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe WTA has been so strong on this issue \u2026 and the players, really taking a chance on their pocket book,\u201d Navratilova <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/sport\/2022\/jan\/24\/martina-navratilova-says-tennis-australia-is-capitulating-to-china-over-peng-shuai\">said<\/a>. \u201cThe ATP was pretty weak on this. The IOC, well we know where they are. And just really capitulating on this issue from the Aussies, letting China dictate what they do at their own slam.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Joe Morgan is the Sports Reporter for The Daily Wire. Most recently, Morgan covered the Clippers, Lakers, and the NBA for Sporting News. Send your sports questions to&nbsp;sports@dailywire.com.<\/p>\n<p>The Daily Wire is one of America\u2019s fastest-growing conservative media companies and counter-cultural outlets for news, opinion, and entertainment. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/subscribe\">member<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Eighteen-time Grand Slam winner Martina Navratilova laid into the Australian Open on Sunday, following reports that Tennis Australia forced fans of the Australian Open to remove t-shirts with the words \u201cWhere is Peng Shuai.\u201d \u201cSports has always been at the forefront of social issues, pushing them forward,\u201d Navratilova said on Sunday. \u201cAnd we are going &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1235619","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1235619","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1235619"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1235619\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1235619"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1235619"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1235619"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}