Allowing into the Olympics a Dutch athlete convicted of raping a child is a disgrace

In the run-up to major sporting events, there are always stories that surface about the competing athletes – tales of triumph in the face of adversity, incredible recoveries from injury, their superhuman dedication. An athlete’s “life journey” is what makes sport so compelling to watch.

Then, occasionally, a far-less palatable story pops up: doping, cheating, an offensive remark made in a press conference. We’re used to sportspeople being “real”. But this week came a revelation that will have sickened many fans of the Olympic Games to the core. I cannot be alone in now questioning the moral boundaries of elite-level competition.

The story concerns a Dutch international beach volleyball player, 29-year-old Steven van de Velde, who will compete for his country in this summer’s Paris Olympics.

He is also a convicted child rapist, having been sentenced to four years in prison after pleading guilty to three counts of rape involving a 12-year-old British schoolgirl he met on Facebook.

Van de Velde was 19 at the time of the sexual assault. He met the girl on social media, and in August 2014, travelled to the UK, raping her at an address in Milton Keynes. It was only because he suggested she get the morning-after pill at a family planning clinic that the authorities were alerted because of her age.

Meanwhile, Van de Velde had returned to the Netherlands, but was extradited and arrested in January 2016. A judge at Aylesbury Crown Court handed down a four-year prison sentence, but he was allowed to return to the Netherlands to complete his sentence. He was released after one year.

Following his detention, Van de Velde said: “I do want to correct all the nonsense that has been written about me when I was locked up. I did not read any of it, on purpose, but I understand that it was quite bad, that I have been branded as a sex monster, as a paedophile. That I am not – really not.”

To which I say: Yes you are.

You pleaded guilty to raping a 12-year-old when you were 19. The Cambridge dictionary definition of “paedophile” is “someone who is sexually interested in children”.

Yet now – for some reason known only to the committee of men that make the Olympic team selection in the Netherlands – lucky Steven will get to proudly wear his national colours this summer and participate at the pinnacle of competitive sport.

In a statement, the Dutch Olympic Committee said there was no reason to exclude Van de Velde from taking part at the Games: “Since 2018, Steven van de Velde has been participating in international beach volleyball tournaments again, following an intensive professionally supervised trajectory.”

So, essentially, they’re just going to consign his misdemeanour to history and pretend it never happened. Who cares about a lack of integrity? We just need a gold medal, right?

I can’t help but imagine how the victim’s family feel about the news that their daughter’s rapist is about to be given a chance at finding fame and glory on the biggest international sporting stage. Sick to their stomachs, probably.

I firmly believe convicted offenders – as with any crime – should be allowed to have a life after serving time. If that life involves sport, fine. But when sportsmen and women reach elite level – and this is key – they also automatically become role models for the next generation. And frankly, I don’t care how well you can whack a volleyball over a net, I don’t want my son or daughter looking up to a man who once raped a child.

At least Van de Velde won’t get an easy ride in Paris this summer. Anyone whose Wikipedia page begins: “Steven van de Velde (born 8 August 1994) is a Dutch beach volleyball player. He is a convicted child rapist and has been placed on the sex offender registry in the United Kingdom for life since 2016” – is going to struggle to stay under the radar. And nor should he.

Asked about his selection this week, the chief of the Australian Olympic team said a convicted rapist would never be selected to represent their team. The Netherlands team, meanwhile, has said that Van de Velde will be barred from taking part in media interviews during the Games.

In becoming a successful sportsman, Van de Velde has chosen a path that throws him directly into the spotlight of international public scrutiny. Ultimately, I strongly suspect – as with most questionable or controversial situations in sport – the fans in the stands will make themselves heard. It’s going to be an incredibly uncomfortable experience for the Dutchman. Which is no less than what he deserves.