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How a Chinese tennis star’s disappearance inspired a Hologic sponsorship of WTA

The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA)’s first title sponsor in more than 10 years is Hologic ($HOLX), which is not a traditional sports-adjacent brand.

The medical technology company’s CEO told Yahoo Finance that the seemingly unlikely sponsorship spawned from the WTA pulling out of China amid the sudden disappearance of Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai after she made sexual assault allegations against a prominent Chinese official in November.

“I would say that was a catalyst,” Hologic CEO Steve MacMillan said on Yahoo Finance Live (video above). “We were very well aware of it. We appreciate the values that they have. We didn't do it because of that, but we became much more aware of it, of the whole situation of the WTA and their needs, through their courageous actions.”

Peng eventually reappeared at the Beijing Olympics in February but never explained her absence from tournaments to the WTA. The former world No. 1 in doubles tennis later told a French newspaper that it was "an enormous misunderstanding" and denied making the sexual assault accusation.

Drew Pavlou (L) is pictured wearing a
Drew Pavlou (L) is pictured wearing a "Where is Peng Shuai?" T-shirt on the grounds outside one of the venues of the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne on January 25, 2022. (Photo by Paul Crock / AFP) (PAUL CROCK via Getty Images)

The WTA immediately called on Chinese officials to investigate and took a hard stance against the Chinese government’s nonresponse to Peng’s disappearance. The association pulled all tournaments out of China, a move in stark contrast to the International Olympic Committee (IOC)’s non-comment on the widely covered genocide happening in the host nation of the 2022 Winter Olympics.

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Hologic, which focuses on women’s health and well-being, admired the definitive stance from the WTA and thought the association's focus on women’s empowerment would be a good fit.

“Initially, we're thinking about just doing a small sponsorship, to get involved in something little,” MacMillan said. “But we just came together so much and then we realized the needs and the opportunities the WTA had. And a big part of what we're trying to do with Hologic right now is we realize we need advocates on a global basis. And the WTA is very global.”

Shuai Peng of China plays a backhand on day two of the 2020 Australian Open on January 21, 2020 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)
Shuai Peng of China plays a backhand on day two of the 2020 Australian Open on January 21, 2020 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images) (Mark Kolbe via Getty Images)

Hologic’s mission to raise awareness around women’s health concerns took center stage in the sports world earlier this year as well. The company broadcasted an advertisement with Mary J. Blige during the Super Bowl. Having already developed a relationship with Blige, a performer at the big game’s halftime show in Los Angeles, Hologic leveraged its relationship to highlight each women’s need for preventive care regardless of what their daily life may entail.

“We just thought, let's do something a little out of our comfort zone and let's use it to try to get the messaging out further because we knew it would get a lot of ancillary attention, which it clearly did because obviously working with her got us a lot more awareness than we would have even just on her own,” MacMillan said. “And that's a little how we think about the WTA, is the Hologic name is important and nice. But in reality, your partner with the WTA our messaging will get to tens of millions of more people in a relevant fashion than if it was just Hologic on our own.”

Josh is a producer for Yahoo Finance.

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