The child rapist competing at the Olympics: Full story of the Dutch volleyball star convicted of having sex with British 12-year-old girl

The past has a measurement of catching up pinch criminals, peculiarly those whose victims are children. But successful nan lawsuit of Steven van de Velde, destiny has had an overseas measurement of showing it.

There was revulsion and fury past week erstwhile it was revealed that nan formation volleyball prima will compete for nan Netherlands astatine nan Olympic Games successful Paris this month.

A talented jock he whitethorn be, but he is besides a convicted kid rapist, jailed successful March 2016 aft pleading blameworthy astatine Aylesbury Crown Court to 3 counts of rape against a 12-year-old British woman he met via Facebook.

Van de Velde knew nan girl’s property erstwhile he assaulted her and his sanction remains connected nan UK’s Sex Offender register.

When he was sentenced nan judge said his hopes of representing his state were now ‘a shattered dream’.

But successful nan 8 years since his merchandise from situation nan 29-year-old’s life has undergone a stunning transformation.

Not only has van de Velde been welcomed backmost into nan Dutch volleyball organization and nurtured backmost onto an world pathway, but his individual life has besides flourished.

In 2022, he joined a erstwhile policewoman from Munster successful Germany who is besides a master formation volleyball player. The mates person a two-year-old son.

How his unfortunate has fared successful nan intervening years isn’t known, but erstwhile van de Velde was sentenced nan tribunal heard that since nan incident she had been self-harming and had besides attempted to return an overdose.

Of course, location is thing incorrect pinch criminals rebuilding their lives erstwhile they person served their time.

But nan mode of van de Velde’s rehabilitation makes disturbing reading, particularly successful nan discourse of a jaw-dropping question and reply he gave successful his location state aft his merchandise successful 2017, successful which he denied being a paedophile, tried to reason that he had nan young schoolgirl’s consent and said he wanted to ‘correct nan delirium that was written astir me’ pinch ‘my type of nan story’.

The NSPCC responded astatine nan clip that his ‘lack of remorse and self-pity is breathtaking’.

Serious questions are now being asked astir really connected world a convicted kid activity offender is being allowed to compete astatine nan Olympics, whether nan 6ft 6in blond prima poses a threat to young female athletes and why nary 1 has stepped successful to artifact his selection?

It is an bonzer business which, arsenic 1 British Olympic Committee root put it to me, is ‘impossible to imagine’ happening successful nan UK.

The BOC is said to beryllium profoundly concerned astir van de Velde’s inclusion for Paris. Team GB has disqualifying rules astir safeguarding issues and bringing nan organisation into disrepute.

Van de Velde was a 19-year-old rising volleyball prima successful 2014 erstwhile he started chatting to nan 12-year-old woman via Facebook aft she sent him a friend request.

As charismatic Sandra Beck told nan tribunal successful 2016, complete a play of clip ‘he made her consciousness special’.

On August 2, 2014 he took an easyJet formation from Amsterdam to Luton airport, contempt knowing really young nan woman was. From there, he took a taxi to Milton Keynes and met up pinch his victim.

The woman told her family she was staying pinch a friend and snuck retired to meet van de Velde. They went to Furzton Lake, a secluded beauty spot successful nan town, wherever they drank Baileys Irish Cream. Little much than six hours aft gathering him, nan unfortunate performed oral activity connected nan athlete.

Later, aft he grounded to find a edifice room for them, they snuck past nan concisely unmanned reception table of a adjacent Premier Inn and made a makeshift furniture nether a stairwell aft uncovering a cardboard container and pillows. The pursuing day, knowing her mother would beryllium retired shopping, nan woman invited van de Velde to her location wherever he had activity pinch her, stopping erstwhile she said he was hurting her. She past performed oral activity connected him again.

Before leaving for nan airport, he advised nan woman to get a greeting aft pill arsenic they had not utilized contraception. Staff astatine a family readying session alerted her parents because of nan girl’s highly young age. Her parents past contacted nan police.

By then, van de Velde, from Voorburg, had returned location and resumed his training.

Less than a twelvemonth aft his crime, he represented his state astatine nan inaugural European Games successful Baku, Azerbaijan successful 2015, and was owed to commencement training pinch nan Dutch 2016 Olympic team.

But days aft nan Baku competition, a European warrant was issued for his arrest. He was extradited to nan UK successful January 2016 and pleaded blameworthy to 3 counts of raping a child.

In court, defence barrister Linda Strudwick said it had been a ‘spur of nan infinitesimal decision’ to alert to London. Van de Velde, she said, was not a ‘predatory young man’.

Dressed successful a grey Nike sweatshirt, nan jock himself appeared astatine his sentencing proceeding via video nexus from situation successful nan UK, while his father, Professor Steef van de Velde — who astatine nan clip was Dean of nan prestigious Rotterdam School of Management astatine Erasmus University — and his mother and sister sat successful tribunal successful Aylesbury to support him.

‘This was a caring and loving narration betwixt 2 people, a woman who was astir 13 and an older boy of 19, but 1 who was very young and much of an adolescent,’ based on Ms Strudwick. ‘The property spread is not rather truthful stark arsenic it mightiness person seemed.

‘Steven did not travel to this state for nan intent of having sex. He made it plain that arsenic acold arsenic he was concerned she was excessively young. Miss A said she wanted to suffer her virginity to him.’ Ms Strudwick said her customer was devastated by his actions and was a ‘steady’ young man, who did not fresh nan laddish stereotype. Judge Francis Sheridan, however, was unequivocal astir nan seriousness of nan crime.

In nan remarks he made while sentencing past 22-year-old van de Velde to 4 years successful jail, he said: ‘The affectional harm that has been caused to this kid is enormous.’

He besides stated: ‘You were a hugely talented jock but person a acheronian side.’

‘Prior to coming to this state you were training arsenic a imaginable Olympian,’ he said. ‘Your hopes of representing your state now dishonesty arsenic a shattered dream.’

He jailed van de Velde for 4 years for each count of rape, to tally concurrently, and placed him connected nan Sex Offenders Register indefinitely.

But van de Velde served little than a twelvemonth successful a UK situation earlier being repatriated to nan Netherlands arsenic portion of nan extradition agreement, wherever he spent a period successful situation earlier being released astatine nan opening of 2017.

With staggering arrogance, he instantly gave that question and reply to Dutch newspaper Algemeen Dagblad accompanied by a photoshoot. ‘I want to show my broadside of nan story,’ he said. ‘I was portrayed arsenic a activity monster, arsenic a paedophile. That I americium not. I americium really not.’

He said that ‘Miss A’ had contacted him first, clicking connected a remark he near nether a Facebook video and sending a friend petition astatine a clip erstwhile he was ‘deeply unhappy’ pinch nan strict life he was surviving astatine a volleyball training centre.

‘That happened rather often pinch group from abroad; often they wanted tips from maine astir formation volleyball — really to jump higher, for example. So I didn’t find it unusual that an English woman contacted me. She told maine she was 16; that’s what she looked like.’

After a while, she confessed that she was only 12.

 ‘She asked maine to support successful touch, which I put disconnected for a while, but later I responded again. And wrong a short clip we were chatting arsenic often arsenic erstwhile I still thought she was 16.’

He insisted that he ‘didn’t spell to England pinch nan volition of having activity pinch her’.

‘I wanted to flight from my life here, that crushing apical sports life. I had to leave.’

He said that what he had done was ‘unfathomable’, that he had been ‘horribly stupid’ and ‘it virtually makes maine consciousness sick now’. ‘It’s wholly my fault, moreover though I had her consent. I should person known better. I told her nan aforesaid point earlier my arrest. It’s not astir you. It’s astir things I should person known better.’

Van de Velde said that afterwards, nan woman tried to protect him by telling different stories to her parents and past fto him cognize erstwhile nan constabulary had been called.

‘Part of maine couldn’t judge this was each real. I decided not to confide successful anyone, because I didn’t cognize myself really it would extremity and if I would ever beryllium prosecuted.

‘I tried to ideate what it would beryllium for illustration to spell to jail, to ne'er beryllium capable to play formation volleyball again. That’s impossible, judge me. Not doable.’

The NSPCC said astatine nan time: ‘We tin only ideate really distressed his unfortunate must consciousness if she sees his comments.’

Soon aft nan interview, nan Dutch Volleyball Federation, Nevobo, said it was unfastened to having a speech pinch van de Velde. A spokesperson said that ‘if personification has served his sentence, he deserves a 2nd chance’.

Indeed, successful his autochthonal Netherlands, wherever his past is well-known and apparently tolerated, van de Velde has enjoyed an bonzer comeback, 1 which would beryllium unimaginable successful nan UK.

This mightiness beryllium explained by nan truth that Dutch rule relating to activity pinch minors is little stringent than its English equivalent.

Judges successful Dutch courts are allowed to measurement up nan circumstances of each lawsuit and return into relationship factors specified arsenic consent and nan beingness of a relationship.

On Wednesday, an article successful Dutch newspaper Algemeen Dagblad, which ran nan 2017 question and reply pinch van de Velde, criticised ‘foreign media’ who had ‘raised a fuss’, adding that ‘the facts and nuances are important successful this story’.

But erstwhile Judge Francis Sheridan sentenced van de Velde he gave a clear penetration into why English rule is arsenic strict arsenic it is.

‘She [the victim] instigated that activity arsenic she thought that was what you do erstwhile you are “in love”,’ he explained. ‘That justifies why nan rule successful England is arsenic wise arsenic it is successful prohibiting a kid from consenting.

‘A young, naive, foolish young kid had formed nan position that you loved her. In reality you only knew her connected nan internet, had ne'er met her and were afloat alert of nan property difference.

‘You were nan adult, she was nan kid and until you recognise that you will stay a threat to young girls.’

Amid a increasing backlash connected societal media, home maltreatment campaigner David Challen wrote connected X, formerly Twitter: ‘A communicative arsenic aged arsenic time: rapist pinch a sporting talent fixed a free walk truthful he tin proceed his master career.’

A petition has besides been launched connected nan website change.org, calling connected nan International Olympic Committee to exclude known intersexual offenders from participating successful nan Olympic Games. Because, staggeringly, nan IOC does not look to person nan powerfulness to prohibition him. It says nan work lies pinch nan Netherlands Olympic Committee (NOC). A spokesperson said: ‘The information of individual squad members, pursuing qualifications connected nan section of play, is nan sole work of each respective National Olympic Committee.’

The Netherlands said this week that location was nary logic to forestall him from competing.

The petition asks nan IOC to ‘imagine nan benignant of connection it sends to nan world — that a world level that celebrates unity, equality and athletics values allows a perpetrator of intersexual maltreatment to correspond their country. It questions nan civilized crushed of specified an arena and profoundly hurts those who person suffered astatine nan hands of these criminals, particularly nan woman who survived this circumstantial offender’s brutality’.

Former British Olympic swimmer Sharron Davies MBE, who was conscionable 13 erstwhile she was selected to correspond Great Britain astatine nan 1976 Summer Olympics successful Montreal, has besides added her sound to nan increasing furore.

She said that she was ‘disappointed to spot convicted kid rapist Steven van de Velde included successful nan Dutch Olympic team’ but added she was ‘equally disappointed’ that a man who ‘raped a 12-year-old woman only served 1 twelvemonth successful a British situation for his crime’.

According to nan NOC, van de Velde was capable to return to volleyball successful 2018 aft ‘an intensive professionally supervised trajectory’.

It stated: ‘After his release, he sought and received master counselling. He demonstrated to those astir him — privately and professionally — self-insight and reflection.

‘Van de Velde now meets each nan qualification requirements for nan Olympic Games and is truthful portion of nan team.’

The determination to let van de Velde to return to nationalist formation volleyball successful nan Netherlands was limited connected definite conditions, however. He is not allowed, for example, to springiness training to underage girls.

Sources successful nan Netherlands opportunity nan sports prima knew erstwhile deciding to compete successful this summer’s Olympics that his disturbing past would travel backmost to haunt him.

In a connection this week he said: ‘I cannot reverse what happened, my past cannot beryllium erased. I carnivore nan consequences. It was nan biggest correction of my life.’

His victim, who will now beryllium 22 years old, would surely opportunity nan same.