Mr. L'Homme on NPO Radio 1 and BBC about beach volleyball player Van de Velde

'Beach volleyball player Van de Velde takes no responsibility for raping 12-year-old'

https://www.nporadio1.nl/nieuws/sport/3a9f5d17-45d2-4ff2-9d01-cae2959c4faa/beachvolleyballer-van-der-velde-neemt-geen-verantwoordelijkheid-voor-verkrachting-12-jarige

Beach volleyball player Steven van de Velde (29), who competes in the Olympics next week, was convicted by a British judge a decade ago of raping a 12-year-old. Sara Alaoui, who counsels victims of sexual abuse with the Safe Space Club, would prefer to bar him from the Games: "He doesn't take responsibility and he sees himself too much as a victim."

For Van de Velde, the Games will already be different from other athletes. For example, he will not be staying among fellow athletes in the Olympic village or talking to the press. 

How Van de Velde talks about the case is not good, says Alaoui in This is the day: "He talks about being an adolescent, but he was 19 so then you are not. He says he wants it to stop and that he wants to move on with his life, which shows that it does not understand the seriousness of the situation. He dismisses it as a juvenile sin," she believes.

Alaoui believes that Van de Velde deserves a second chance per se, but that he sees himself too much as a victim. "He doesn't show how bad it actually is, because this young lady has actually been given a life sentence," she said. She would have liked to have seen Van der Velde's position used to work against child abuse. "In Eindhoven, you have a club of men who have previously abused their wives, who are now helping other men not to do it," she gives as an example.

Jurisdiction

Attorney Jordi l'Homme thinks the fuss is unjustified. "We are now ten years down the road. He has been punished by the judge. He recognized directly in the criminal case that he did something terrible and should not have done it," he said. According to l'Homme, three goals of justice have been applied in the case: "The retribution has now been done, the norm has been confirmed AND he has been resocialized."

L'Homme points out that NOC-NSF has done research on Van de Velde: "From that, it was found that the chance of recidivism is zero."

For now, Van der Velde is going to the Games. Beach volleyball begins June 27, right under the Eiffel Tower.

Mr. L'Homme also explained to the BBC why this may have received somewhat less attention in the Netherlands than in the UK and Australia.