Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai appears safe in video call

During the 30-minute call the star thanked the International Olympic Committee for “its concern about her wellbeing”

Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai has appeared safe and well in a video call with the International Olympic Committee’s president.

In a statement, the president says he spoke with Peng for 30 minutes and “she was doing fine”.

The tennis player disappeared from the public eye for almost three weeks after making allegations that she was sexually assaulted by a former high-ranking Chinese official.

The disappearance has sparked worldwide panic, with many fearing Peng was being held against her will in retaliation by the Chinese government.

The Olympic Committee says “at the beginning of the 30-minute call, Peng Shuai thanked the IOC for its concern about her wellbeing”… she explained that she is safe and well, living at her home in Beijing, but would like to have her privacy respected at this time”.

The statement also included a photo of the pair talking via video chat.