Max Sherry
Activists claim they were "harassed" by security guards at Wimbledon for wearing 'where is Peng Shuai' t-shirts.
A group of men from the Free Tibet campaign were seen walking around the All England Lawn Tennis Club donning the distinctive shirts when they were allegedly confronted by security staff.
There are still mounting concerns for the whereabouts of the Chinese tennis star after she disappeared last year following allegations of sexual assault against a Communist politician.
According to Wimbledon rules, spectators are warned against wearing “any objects or clothing bearing political statements, objectionable or offensive statements or commercial identification intended for ‘ambush marketing’.”
Will Hoyles one of the campaigners, told The Guardian: “We came trying to raise a bit of awareness but Wimbledon have managed to make it worse for themselves by harassing us.
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“They were asking loads of questions about what we were going to do, why we were here, you know, what we’d already done etc. And we told them we’d just been wandering around and we’d spoken to a few people and that’s when they seemed to get quite suspicious.”
Hoyles added that Wimbledon officials told them they “should not approach anyone to talk to them”.
“They said repeatedly the club doesn’t like to be political.”
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Nine-time Wimbledon champion Martina Navratilova also took issue with the treatment of the protestors.
She tweeted: “What? Not allowed to speak?!? WTH?”
“This is what Russia and China would do, right? But UK? Hmm.”
The group were not kicked out of the grounds, later being snapped wearing the same t-shirts while watching a match from the stands.
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“We can confirm that four guests were approached today by security whilst walking outside No 1 Court,” a statement from the All England Lawn Tennis Club read.
“These individuals are now enjoying their day with us and continue to be able to wear their T-shirts.
“Like much of the tennis community and people around the world more broadly, we remain very concerned for Peng Shuai and we continue to support the WTA’s efforts.”
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The WTA, which is tennis' governing body, has been has been very vocal in calling upon Chinese authorities to supply information on Shuai following her disappearance.
Since going missing, a number of people - namely Chinese officials - have claimed to have sighted her with various videos appearing across socila media.
Even Shuai herself has allegedly penned letters confirming her safety, although the wider tennis community remains skeptical as to whether this is legitimate.