The convicted rapist is not staying at the Olympic Village with his fellow competitors.
The volleyball partner of convicted child rapist Steven van de Velde has spoken out in defence of his teammate after he received boos and jeers from the crowd during their opening match at the Olympic Games in Paris.
The pair, who represent the Netherlands, received a hostile reception from the audience when they took their place in the center of the arena for their match against Italian pair Alex Ranghieri and Adrian Carambula earlier today.
Boos -and some applause – as Steven van de Velde, who was convicted of raping a 12-year-old British girl when he was 19, enters the Stadium with his partner Matthew Immers. The boos were more audible when he was later introduced separately #PARIS2024 pic.twitter.com/yJGjxXKzE9
— Alexandra Topping (@LexyTopping) July 28, 2024
Van de Velde was convicted of raping a 12-year-old when he was 19.
The athlete, now 29, received a four year sentence in 2016.
He admitted three counts of rape against a child during an incident which took place in August 2014.
He had met the British girl on Facebook and flown to England to meet her with full knowledge of her age, the Guardian reported.
The athlete only served 12 months of his sentence before he was released.
There were no cheers when Van de Velde was introduced to the crowd individually this morning at Champs de Mars park under the Eiffel Tower, with some boos clearly audible.
He is not staying at the Olympic Village with his fellow competitors at his own request and will not conduct the usual post-match mixed zone interviews.
The pair lost to the Italians and, in his post match interview with journalists, one half of the Dutch duo – Matthew Immers – said he was “surprised” by the crowd reaction to his teammate’s appearance.
Asked if van de Velde had ever expressed any remorse to him for rape, Immers said: “No, he doesn’t, he doesn’t explain it.”
He continued: “I know the guy for three, four years and we played every tournament and right now they make a really big discussion of it [the child rape conviction].
Asked whether a convict child rapist provided a good role model for young people aspiring to become athletes, he replied: “I don’t know.
“I think Steven is a really good example from how he is right now,” he added.
“[Van de Velde’s conviction] it’s in the past. He had his punishment.”
Immers admitted the reaction to van de Velde’s past had come as a surprise and said he “didn’t see it coming”.
He told Dutch broadcaster NOS: “We don’t like it, of course. That this is happening. Suddenly, after three years, this comes to the surface at such a big tournament.
“Because I’ve known him for three years and played with him. It came out of nowhere for me, actually. At least that it was so big.”
The 23-year-old added: “People are allowed to have an opinion, but we just want to play the tournament as well as possible.”
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Immers’ defence of his teammate comes after Paula Radcliffe was forced to apologise for wishing the convicted criminal “the best of luck”.
His selection for this year’s Olympics has been condemned by many, particularly women’s safety groups.
However, during an appearance on LBC’s Andrew Marr Tonight show, former Team GB Olympian Radcliffe suggested he shouldn’t be ‘punished twice’ for his actions.
She said banning Van de Velde from competing at the Olympics was a “very dangerous line to go down, given that we allow people who cheat in sport and take drugs in sport to come back.”
She continued: “He served his jail time, and it’s a long time to carry on paying for that mistake for the rest of your life. He may well have turned it round and completely repented.
“I know that he is married now and has settled down. I think it’s a tough thing to do to punish him twice and if he’s managed to successfully turn his life around after being sent to prison and to qualify and to be playing sport at the highest level, then I actually wish him the best of luck.”
