Olympic athlete and convicted child rapist denied entry to Australia

Olympic beach volleyball player and convicted child rapist Steven van de Velde has been blocked from entering Australia to compete in the Volleyball World Championships.

The 31-year-old was jailed for four years in March 2016 for raping a 12-year-old British girl in Milton Keynes in 2014.

Van de Velde served 12 months of his prison sentence and resumed his volleyball career after he was released in 2018.

He represented the Netherlands at the Olympics last year and had been named in the Dutch team for the upcoming world championships in Adelaide, which begin on November 14.

However, the Australian government has rejected his visa application, meaning that he will be unable to travel to the country.

‘We took into account that the combination of the Australian authorities’ policy and my past might pose a problem for obtaining a visa,’ Van de Velde said.

‘This outcome is not only accepted by me, but also by the rest of the team with whom we work closely all year.’

Heleen Crielaard, who is the Dutch Volleyball Association’s technical director, said: ‘We have included all the documents requested by the Australian authorities for this application and substantiated why we believe he should be able to play the World Cup in Australia.

‘Unfortunately, we have now been informed that the decision has been made not to grant the visa. We regret this, but we have no choice but to accept the decision.’

During his time at the Olympics in Paris last summer, Van de Velde was booed by members of the crowd, and stayed in separate accommodation away from the athletes’ village.

After he was released from prison, Van de Velde said in 2018: ‘I cannot reverse it, so I will have to bear the consequences. It has been the biggest mistake of my life.’

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