Beach Volleyball-Dutch convicted rapist barred from world championships in Australia
Paris 2024 Olympics - Beach Volleyball - Men's Round of 16 Match - Brazil vs Netherlands (Evandro/Arthur vs van de Velde/Immers) - Eiffel Tower Stadium, Paris, France - August 04, 2024. Steven van de Velde of Netherlands looks on. REUTERS/Louisa Gouliamaki
MELBOURNE :Netherlands beach volleyball player Steven van de Velde, a convicted rapist, has been denied a visa by Australia to compete at the world championships in Adelaide next month, the Dutch volleyball association (Nevobo) said.
Olympian Van de Velde was sentenced to four years in prison in Britain in 2016 after he was convicted of raping a 12-year-old girl. He was 19 at the time of the offence.
Nevobo said both Van de Velde and his doubles partner Alexander Brouwer would not participate in the world championships, which start on November 14.
"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," technical director Heleen Crielaard said in a statement.
Australia's Department of Home Affairs, which handles visa issuance, did not provide immediate comment when contacted by Reuters on Tuesday.
Van de Velde, a twice bronze medallist at the European championships, said in the Nevobo statement the outcome was acceptable to him and his Netherlands teammates.
"We took into account that the combination of the Australian authorities' policy and my past might pose a problem for obtaining a visa," the 31-year-old said.
Brouwer posted on social media that his season was now over.
"Got the news this morning — no visa means no Australia," he wrote.
"Would've loved to compete with Steven in my 7th World Championships, but it is what it is."
Van de Velde, who returned to volleyball in 2017 after spending 13 months in prison, competed at the Paris Olympics last year but his participation was widely criticised and drew jeers from sections of the crowd.
