Tokyo Olympics: silence is golden at Games as Western teams keep quiet over suspected use of Xinjiang cotton by Chinese brands

Human rights groups have alleged forced labour is being used in the Uygur autonomous region to produce clothing for well-known fashion brands

Beijing has consistently denied the accusations saying the industry there is largely mechanised

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Germany basketball player Andreas Obst wears his Peak-sponsored uniform at the Tokyo Olympics. Photo: Reuters

Published: 5:30pm, 1 Aug 2021Updated: 5:30pm, 1 Aug 2021

As athletes show off their physique and prowess at the Tokyo Games, a little-known Chinese sportswear maker called Peak Sport Products is also making its mark on the Olympic stage.

There is nothing surprising about this as mid-range sportswear brands come and go, but Peak, which counts New Zealand, Iceland and Belgium among the seven delegations it is sponsoring, is a vocal advocate of the use of cotton from China’s Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

“As a Chinese brand, we have always purchased Xinjiang cotton and Chinese cotton! Chinese brand, Chinese-made! I support Xinjiang cotton!” Peak chief executive Ren Zhihua wrote on his Weibo page in March and posted a cotton supply contract with Xinjiang Litai Silk Road Investment, a company accused of using forced labour, to prove his point.

Western countries and human rights groups have alleged such cotton was harvested with forced labour. Beijing has repeatedly denied forced labour exists in Xinjiang, saying the cotton industry there has been largely mechanised.

Peak is also sponsoring the Olympic committees of Romania, Brazil, Slovenia and Ukraine and the Olympic men’s basketball teams of Germany, Iran and Nigeria, and the Serbian women’s team.

The German national team have worn Peak basketball socks bearing reference numbers WB03 and WB07, which are made of 76 per cent cotton, Peak Germany said in its online catalogue. At the Olympics, some basketball players of the Peak-sponsored teams have worn identically looking socks.

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