Dutch volleyball player who raped 12-year-old British girl qualifies/Paris Olympics…
 

A Dutch beach volleyball player who raped a 12-year-old British girl has qualified for next month’s Paris Olympics, despite being told by a judge that his hopes of representing the Netherlands was a “shattered dream”.

Steven van de Velde was sentenced in March 2016 to four years in prison after admitting three counts of rape against a child he had met on Facebook. He had flown from the Netherlands to the UK in August 2014, when he was 19, to meet his victim.

Judge Francis Sheridan told him: “Prior to coming to this country you were training as a potential Olympian. Your hopes of representing your country now lie as a shattered dream.”

Except Van de Velde, who was released after serving just 12 months at a Dutch prison, has since been allowed to rehabilitate his Olympic career, this month sealing his spot in the national pair at the Paris Games alongside Matthew Immers.

On sentencing at Aylesbury Crown Court after being extradited from his homeland, his own defence lawyer, Linda Strudwick, said of the verdict: “The headlines say it all: ‘A sex monster.’ It’s plainly a career end for him.”

It has proved anything but, with Van de Velde, now 29, re-establishing his credentials in beach volleyball to such an extent that he and Immer are the 11th-ranked team in the world heading to Paris next month.

Van de Velde’s comeback presents a major moral conundrum for the International Olympic Committee. Every Paris Olympian is required to sign an Athletes’ Rights and Responsibilities Declaration, with point seven demanding: “Act as a role model.”

Having travelled from Amsterdam to Milton Keynes to have sex with a girl he knew was just 12, Van de Velde was condemned in the strongest terms in 2016 by the judge at Aylesbury Crown Court. The court heard that he had gone to the home of the victim, with whom he had communicated on social networks before arranging to visit, while her mother was out and had taken her virginity.

“Your actions have wrecked your life and you could, had you never come to England and committed these offences, have been a leader in your sport,” Judge Sheridan said. “A young, naive, foolish child had formed the view that you loved her. In reality, you only knew her on the internet, had never met her before and were fully aware of the age difference.”

Upon his release in 2017 after only a quarter of his sentence, Van de Velde, who had wept in court on hearing about the girl’s subsequent self-harm and overdose, 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.

“Everyone can have their opinion about me, but it is only fair if they also know my side of the story.”

These remarks drew a withering response from the National Society for Protection of Cruelty to Children, who said: “Van de Velde’s lack of remorse and self-pity is breathtaking, and we can only begin to imagine how distressed his victim must feel if she sees his comments.

“Grooming can leave a child feeling ashamed or even guilty, because they believe they have somehow willingly participated when, in fact, an adult has preyed upon them in order to sexually exploit them.”

The Dutch Olympic committee have yet to comment on Van de Velde’s qualification for Paris, with The Australian reporting that the country’s volleyball federation are still to ratify their final athlete selections. The IOC has been contacted for a response.

https://uk.sports.yahoo.com/news/dut...193257270.html

The fact that this **** wants us to pity him.

He is a Nonce, and he has robbed someone else's spot at the Olympics that would've loved to have had the chance of representing their country, that also didn't molest a child (shocker!) Vile creep.

Thank god that I didn't say this in Germany, the Police might arrest me for it.

Appalling.

https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/06...9361032315.jpg
[Van de Velde was 19 when he flew from
the Netherlands to the UK to meet
the schoolgirl in August 2014.

The sportsman is seen celebrating
at the Beach World Champs in 2023]


https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...-Olympics.html

How has he the nerve to be seen in public !!!!!!


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He doesn't believe he has done anything wrong that it looks like the Dutch Olympic Federation agree with him, his victim will be 22 now I wonder how she feels, not that it matters by the looks of things, women and girls are second class citizens now

You would wonder if the outcome would been the same had his victim been a 12 year old boy

who doesn't rape minors here in my nation is a question you can better ask yourself


Ali B, a dutch/moroccan rapper

Jeroen Rietbergen, conductor of The Voice of Holland live band


we don't even know Steven Van der Velde LOL, how on earth are we supposed to know what he allegedly had done?

He admitted it, hardly "allegedly"

''He had flown from the Netherlands to the UK in August 2014''


jeez, 10 years ago


talk about bringing up old cows :idc:

he served his jail sentence, until his release in 2017 though


not Ammi posting old news :joker:

This story relates to him being chosen for the Olympics this year despite being a paedophile. How is that old news? Are you suggesting he was a paedo then but isn't now?

The issue here is the girl was 12 years old Nicky, not the 7 year gap ffs. 12 years old isn't even a teenager yet she was a literal child and he was an adult. Don't be so gross just to be some sort of rebel Nicky

.
Disgraceful.
Rape, murder, it appears so called sports stars can get away with anything.
Couldn’t possibly be because they represent their country could it.

should've not been eligible to compete in the qualifying event in the first place with all honesty

hopefully IOC could make the NOC-NSF ban Van der Velde and have NOC-NSF announce a replacement partner to play with Matthew Immers

will also be better for Immers to play with someone else, someone who isn't controversial

otherwise if he plays with Van de Velde, they'll likely receive quite a few boo's something Immers doesn't deserve at all

…it’s in the current news because the judge said that he had shattered any future dream of competing as an Olympian…

‘Judge Francis Sheridan told him: “Prior to coming to this country you were training as a potential Olympian. Your hopes of representing your country now lie as a shattered dream.”…’

…but after serving a short sentence of 12 months, he’s been accepted as qualifying…

…according to the article, he only served one quarter of his sentence…/…so was given 4 years prison time presumably…but only served one….hmmmm, I’m not sure why that is but I’ll see I what information I can find…(…if any…)…the 12yr old child attempted to take her own life apparently….

…this is a news article on the original case…

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-englan...herts-39292039


…he was sentenced in England because he came to this country to groom his victim and was charged with three counts of rape…he was transferred back to the Netherlands to complete his sentence, but was released from there without completing it….

it's by no means certain that the olympics will go ahead as planned. France is on a political knife edge at the moment and the olympics is due to start after the election

We should have brought him back to serve his sentence then .. sounds like money was involved


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Just cancel the Olympics, noone is interested anymore

That’s more or less correct ( since Ben Johnson) ..


Though the ladies beach ball is wonderfully popular… apparently


:)


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oh yeah please don't cancel that :hehe:

Pedos always get let off lightly.