Bach to skip Paralympics, hopes Peng visits IOC in coming months

International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach will not visit the Winter Paralympics in Beijing in March, the IOC announced on Sunday as the Winter Olympics closed.
Like the Olympics, the Paralympics will be held in a closed bubble for all participants because of the coronavirus pandemic.
His non-attendance has been agreed with Paralympics chief Andrew Parsons, with Bach wishing Paralympic participants and organizers "all the best," the IOC said. It will be represented at the March 4-13 event by vice president Ser Miang Ng from Singapore.
The IOC chief's flying visit to the opening of the Paralympics in Tokyo last year was criticized in some quarters as a health risk.
German Bach has also given a timeline for when Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai may visit IOC headquarters in Switzerland.
"She will hopefully come to Lausanne in the summer or early autumn," he told Germany's Funke newspapers.
Peng appeared to accuse a former Chinese vice premier of sexual assault on social media in November. The post was soon deleted and Peng was not seen in public for weeks.
She later denied alleging sexual assault but tennis officials were worried she was coerced.
Bach attended Beijing Games competition with Peng. They previously held a video conference late last year which was criticized by rights groups, who accused the IOC of being Chinese puppets.
"It was our concern from the first exchange to make it clear to everyone that it was not a one-time video conference," Bach said. "We answered the question the world was asking. 'Where is Peng Shuai?' We sought contact and found her."