Dutch beach volleyball player Steven van de Velde, who was convicted of raping a 12-year-old British girl in 2016, said Tuesday that he considered quitting the Paris Olympics amid the controversy surrounding his participation.
Van de Velde and his partner Matthew Immers reached the quarterfinals in Paris, where they lost to Brazil in straight sets. The pair played four matches in the tournament and Van de Velde was repeatedly subjected to a stream of hoots and whistles.
Asked in an interview with Dutch national broadcaster NOS if he thought about quitting, Van de Velde said that he considered it both before and during the Olympics, but ultimately decided to compete.
“I thought, ‘I don’t want that. I’m not going to give others the power to decide they can bully me away or get rid of me,’” he said told NOS in Dutch.
The Dutch interpretation of the rape of a 12 year old is bullshit. If a 19 year old goes and liquors up a 12 year old and then “has sex with” said 12 year old. The 19 year old is a predator and a rapist.
I think he deserves a second chance, in obscurity. Have him enjoy his life and family. Good on him if there is no recidivism for a crime that has a high recidivism rate.
But allowing him to represent our country at the Olympics is similar to having a convicted felon and sexual abuser on the ballot of a presidential race in the US. It should not be acceptable to anyone, ever.
Agreed