Olympic team make staggering confession: 'We are protecting a convicted child rapist, yes'

Olympic Games athlete Steven van de Velde was allowed to swerve media duties after representing the Netherlands in the beach volleyball on Sunday morning. And the team’s press officer then admitted during a staggering confession that his team were “protecting a convicted child rapist”.

Van der Velde was booed by some sections of the crowd as he was introduced alongside his partner Matthew Immers.

The duo were in action against Italian pairing Alex Ranghieri and Adrian Carambula at the Eiffel Tower stadium but went on to lose the showdown after a closely fought encounter.

All athletes are required by the International Olympic Committee to make themselves available for interviews after they have competed. But Van de Velde, who was handed a four-year prison sentence in 2016 after admitting three counts of rape against a 12-year-old British girl, has been given special dispensation to avoid the media.

And Netherlands press officer John van Vliet explained: “We are protecting a convicted child rapist, yes. To do his sport as best as possible, at a tournament he qualified for.

“Definitely a different situation for Steven has been created. We are very much aware that if we bring Steven out here, it won’t be about sport or his performance. There was a time before this, at least 100 tournaments in beach volleyball, where this never came up.

“He never had to do anything about it. So we wanted to create the environment we are used to and not make it extra-special on a stage which is even bigger for these players.”

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Van de Velde served just 12 months of his sentence after travelling from his home in Amsterdam in August 2014 to meet the girl in Milton Keynes after he had spoken to her on Facebook.

He was allowed to resume his volleyball career after his release, with Dutch chiefs selecting him for their Olympics 2024 team last month.

And Van Vliet added: “The general matter of sex convictions or sex-related crime is definitely a much bigger issue than sport. But in his case, we’ve got a person who has been convicted, who did his sentence, who did everything afterwards that he can do to be able to compete again.”

Ahead of the Olympics, the Dutch Olympic Committee (NOC) stated that Van de Velde had been “following a specialist treatment programme”.

And the organisation added: “Van de Velde has fully engaged with all requirements and has met all the stringent risk assessment thresholds, checks and due diligence. Experts have stated that there is no risk of recidivism.

“Van de Velde has consistently remained transparent about the case which he refers to as the most significant misstep of his life. He deeply regrets the consequences of his actions for those involved.”