'Missing' Peng Shuai To Make Surprise Appearance At Beijing 2022 Olympics

Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai will be present in the Beijing Olympics' COVID-19 "bubble," officials said Thursday.

The two-time Grand Slam doubles champion will meet with International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach in the Chinese capital's virtual bubble or "closed loop" zone, which was created for Games participants to avoid the spread of the coronavirus, ESPN reported.

Peng had made sexual assault allegations against former Chinese vice premier Zhang Gaoli via social media in November last year.

The 36-year-old seemingly went missing from public view following the allegations, but she later appeared at a youth tennis event and completely withdrew the sexual assault accusations against Zhang in a newspaper interview.

Olympic Games organizer IOC has had several video calls with Peng in the past weeks, and a planned meeting with her is set to proceed during the Feb. 4 to 20 Winter Olympics, but officials did not disclose when exactly the meeting will take place.

"We know from her explanations ... that she is living in Beijing, that she can move freely, spending time with family and friends," Bach told a news conference.

"Now we will be able to do the next step in a personal meeting to convince us in person of her well-being and state of mind. We will know more about her physical integrity and mental state when we meet her in person," he added.

The IOC president also said they would support Peng if she wanted her sexual assault allegations against Zhang to be investigated.

"If she wants to have an inquiry we would also support her in this. But it's her life, it's her allegations," Bach said.

While the IOC said it has had several phone calls with Peng in recent months, international concerns over her safety and well-being have not been allayed, according to ESPN.

The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA), the principal organizing body of women's professional tennis, suspended all its tournaments in China over concerns of Peng's safety.

Chinese officials have not directly commented on the allegations, but foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said his government was "always firmly opposed to acts that politicize sports" following the WTA's suspension of activities in the country.

Zhang has not commented on Peng's accusations.