There Are Athletes Perpetrators Of Pedophilia Gentayan At The 2024 Paris Olympics

Steven Van de Velde, a Dutch beach volleyball athlete who was imprisoned for pedophilia and is now appearing at the 2024 Paris Olympics. (AP)

JAKARTA - The Dutch men's beach volleyball athlete at the 2024 Paris Olympics, Steven Van de Velde, is in controversy. That's because he was imprisoned for a pedophilia case.

Van de Velde, now 29, was sentenced to 4 years in prison for having sex with a 12-year-old girl in England in 2016. But he was released just 13 months after serving his sentence.

As a result of this case, Van de Velde is labeled a pedophile and it is feared that he will suffer casualties in Paris. The Dutch Olympic Committee itself argued that Van de Velde was released because he had been undergoing an intensive mentoring process by professionals since 2017.

"An athlete who has such a past should not be allowed to be a member of the team. That's what we apply, because in the Australian team many athletes under the age of 16 must be guarded," said Anna Maers, Australian CDM at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

There are no rules that prohibit pedophilia to participate in the Olympics. Based on this fact, the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) cannot do anything about it.

The only precautionary measure the committee took was not to place Van de Velde in the athletes' village. He is also prohibited from commenting on the media.