Peng Shuai, a Chinese tennis player, told a French newspaper that international concern for her safety is based on "a massive misunderstanding," and she denied accusing a Chinese official of sexual assault.
Peng's well-being became a global concern after she appeared to allege on social media that former Chinese vice premier Zhang Gaoli had sexually assaulted her in the past.
On Saturday, the tennis star met with International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach at the Beijing Winter Olympics. Peng also stated in a recent media interview that she has never accused anyone of sexual assault.
The IOC President met with Shuai face to face, accompanied by former Chair of the Athletes' Commission and IOC member Kirsty Coventry.
According to a statement released by the IOC on Monday, the meeting took place on Saturday during dinner at the Beijing Olympic Club.
Peng denied making such claims in an interview with French newspaper L'Equipe in a Beijing hotel.
"You accused someone of sexual assault in the text that was visible in Europe. What exactly did you write? We do not comprehend," enquired the newspaper.
"Sexual assault? I never asserted that I had been sexually assaulted in any way," Peng stated without providing additional details.
Peng briefly vanished from public view before reappearing at a series of government-sponsored promotional appearances. The interview with L'Equipe was her first with a non-Chinese news organization since the accusation.
In November, the tennis player remained in the global spotlight after she appeared to allege on social media that former Chinese Vice Premier Zhang sexually assaulted her in the past.
The post was quickly deleted, but screenshots of it were circulated on Weibo, China's Twitter-like social media platform.
The post prompted the Women's Tennis Association to suspend tournaments in China and sparked a worldwide outcry over her safety.
The scandal has been heavily censored in China's tightly controlled cyberspace, with recent searches for Peng's name on Weibo returning no results.
Since the post was removed, Peng has not updated her Weibo account.
Peng told the French newspaper that it had resulted in a "huge misunderstanding," repeating comments made in December by a Singapore news outlet, and that she did not want "any further media hype" about it.
The WTA, which stated in December that Peng's appearances did not address its concerns about her well-being, did not respond immediately to a request for comment on her latest remarks.
