Dutch volleyball player who raped 12 year old British girl qualifies for Olympics

[NonCrimeHakeIncident]

https://uk.yahoo.com/sports/news/dutch-volleyball-player-raped-12-193257270.html

His lawyer at the time said “It’s plainly a career end for him”……..

I am so sorry about what happened to your friend. That is beyond awful and I think allowing a rapist to change their name ought to be illegal.

I come from Ealing and remember the Ealing Vicarage Rape. Jill Saward, the victim was treated appallingly by the court and went on to spend her life compaigning for rape victims. I agree our system is broken. The Rotherham rape gangs show that. The Netherlands seems much, much worse - and it is often held up to us as an enlightened place.

Surely it also brings his team and country into disrepute when seen to support such a sports person.

I suspect The Netherlands are actually proud of what they think are their wholesome and liberal attitudes to sex.

Article from the Guardian

"However this week the Netherlands’ chef de mission, Pieter van den Hoogenband, said that he had been surprised by the negative reaction.

“He has been active in international sport, the beach volleyball world, for some time. He has played World Cups, European Championships and World Cups, but then you see that things are different around the Games. That things are exaggerated.”

Surprised by the negative reaction, things are exaggerated. Really.

Sadly I think you are correct there. I read through a few articles in the Dutch press on this topic last night and without fail they expressed complete bafflement at the international reaction. Comments from the public (including a large number of women) overwhelmingly suggested that it was a youthful Indiscretion, he’s paid his dues and should be allowed to move on now.

There also seemed to be an assumption that what happened was ill judged but consensual, instead of the grooming and child rape that it clearly was.

I was quite shocked to read it all.

From my pov it is not the age difference, it was that she was 12. That is the crux of it. He groomed and raped a child and got away with 12 months in jail and is now representing his country. An insult to his victim.
If he had been 29 and she had been 22, and they were in a sexual relationship, that would be fine with me. I don't get this 'age difference' thing. My late DH was 5 years older than me, my ex-DH about 10 years older than me. My late DH's previous DP (third wife, I am fourth) was 11 years older than him.
It's that the girl was a child that matters and would matter whatever the age difference was.

Yes, and ignoring the grooming beginning two years earlier ( someone on this thread found out), or the planning and forethought it takes to get on a plane.

Major misjudgement / idiocy (you choose which) by Paula Radcliffe.

She said in an interview that it was a "tough thing to punish him twice" and that she "wished him the best of luck", drawing parallels with drugs cheats who are given second chances in sport.

Now she's saying she expressed it badly. No, it's not the way you said it, Paula, it's what you said that's really bad.

https://www.itv.com/news/anglia/2024-07-25/radcliffe-mortified-at-wishing-convicted-rapist-luck-at-olympics

Paula Radcliffe supports him https://www.dailymail.co.uk/video/sport/video-3239555/Video-Paula-Radcliffe-wishes-luck-Dutch-athlete-raped-12-year-old.html

I have the impression she is rather ignorant about what the rapist did.

”As I understand it he served his jail time.”

No he didn’t.

“It’s a long time to go on paying for that mistake for the rest of your life.”

He would only be paying the price of not getting the glory of being in the Olympics, meanwhile his life continues free and clear.

He was not actually punished fairly once.

The girl will have her sentence for life.

“It’s a long time to go on paying for that mistake for the rest of your life.”

It wasn't a mistake, Paula, it was a premeditated crime.

She has a daughter. How would she have felt if a 19 year old man had groomed and raped her daughter when she was 12? Is Paula ignorant of the facts or totally lacking in empathy?

I always thought of Olympic athletes as ambassadors for their countries. He's not showing the Netherlands in a good light. Quite the opposite, unless they want the rest of the world to see the Dutch as perverted, grooming child abusers.

As you say, he's very much an ambassador for what they think about women and girls. Their head seems surprised that there is outrage about this. Which says a lot about him too.

It just baffles me how anyone can think this was remotely OK.

He was an adult, she was a child (not even a teen ffs).

He'd been grooming her since she was 10.

It was so premeditated- he had to plan to get on a plane to come and rape her.

He didn't serve his sentence.

This all just sends signals to other awful men that this kind of thing is OK.

When I saw that she'd apologised I guessed immediately what had happened.
Radcliffe is no friend of women as shown by her support for DSD males.

I wouldn't give a fuck if he went on paying for it for the rest of his life.

Dutch child rapist Steven van de Velde is BOOED as he kicks off first Olympics beach volleyball match - after furious backlash over sex offender's inclusion | Daily Mail Online

Good. This is not a role model.

"... we spoke to fans from Germany, the UK and Ireland who felt very strongly that he shouldn't be here....It was interesting that every Dutch fan I spoke to was either unwilling to talk about the subject or was supportive of Van der Velde."

Steven van de Velde: Convicted child rapist booed on Olympic debut in beach volleyball - BBC Sport

Good. I hope he is booed whenever he shows his face,

Gosh the IOC and the DOC are really bending the rules for this child rapist who served only a quarter of his sentence

www.telegraph.co.uk/olympics/2024/07/28/dutch-protect-convicted-rapist-steven-van-de-velde-paris/

https://archive.ph/OmY9Q jump the paywall, you might make the team 😃

While all athletes are required under International Olympic Committee rules to make themselves available to the media after competing, Van Vliet acknowledged that a special dispensation had been made for Van de Velde.

Wouldn't do to be untoward to a paedophile. I wonder if any of these bros would leave their young daughters with this guy? Horrifying thing is, I suspect some of them would.

His teammate was 'taken by surprise at the reaction?

Well cover me in ice cream and bite my bum.

Also covered in the Times

www.thetimes.com/sport/olympics/article/were-protecting-child-rapist-say-dutch-in-defence-of-steven-van-de-velde-cllq79xfn

https://archive.ph/YrIxU skip the paywall like the Dutch skip common decency

Don't let a small thing like child rape spoil the party atmosphere. FFS it's not like she was a horse!

I wonder if he'll go into coaching after all this? Volleyball, grooming...both!