Boos at the Olympics He raped a 12-year-old girl - outrage over beach volleyball player
The beach volleyball player is a convicted felon. Ten years later, after lengthy debates, he competes at the Olympics - and receives boos.
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- Beach volleyball player Steven van de Velde is booed at his Olympic debut.
- Eight years ago, the now 29-year-old was sentenced to four years in prison in England for sexually abusing a 12-year-old girl. He was 19 at the time of the crime.
- Van de Velde had described the earlier incident as the "biggest mistake of my life".
- He was booed by the fans in Paris. The Dutchman did not give any interviews after the match.
After weeks of debates and protests, Dutch beach volleyball player Steven van de Velde was greeted with whistles at his Olympic debut. The 29-year-old, who was imprisoned years ago for sexually abusing a minor, started his first group match in front of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. When the athletes were introduced, whistles and boos were audibly mixed into the applause.
During the match, which van de Velde and his partner Matthew Immers lost to the Italian duo Alex Ranghieri/Adrian Carambula (20:22, 21:19, 13:15), there were hardly any expressions of displeasure. Most of the spectators in the arena below the Eiffel Tower cheered on the Italians, but Dutch fans also made their presence felt.
After the match, van de Velde left the arena without speaking to journalists, as is customary at such events. The Dutch press officer explained that this procedure had been agreed with the athlete, the team and the IOC.
Team-mate Immers said that he was disappointed by the amount of attention the issue had attracted around the Olympics. "I've known the guy for three or four years, we've played every tournament together. And only now is there this big discussion about it."
IOC not happy with circumstances
Eight years ago, van de Velde was convicted in England of sexually abusing a minor. His start in Paris is controversial, with a petition calling for the athlete to be disqualified. The IOC is not "happy and satisfied" with the situation, said spokesman Mark Adams. However, van de Velde had the right to rehabilitation. Due to the circumstances and the turmoil, the athlete had decided together with those responsible not to live in the Olympic village.
Van de Velde had described the earlier incident as the "biggest mistake of my life". He was 19 at the time of the crime and was sentenced to four years in prison in England for raping a twelve-year-old girl. After serving part of his sentence, he was transferred to the Netherlands. "I can't undo what happened and I have to bear the consequences," van de Velde said in an interview a few years ago.
dpa
