- Steven booed at Olympic
- Van de Velde was sentenced to four years in prison
- The pair were introduced to the crowd together
Convicted child rapist Steven van de Velde made his Olympic beach volleyball debut to a mixed reaction in Paris, with audible boos.
Van de Velde was sentenced to four years in prison in 2016 after admitting three counts of rape against a 12-year-old British girl.
He and volleyball partner Matthew Immers are ranked 10th in the world but lost 2-1 toItaly’s Alex Ranghieri and Adrian Carambula, ranked 25th, at the Eiffel Tower Stadium.
The pair were introduced to the crowd together, with cheers as well as some boos as they walked out.
There were boos, along with applause, when Van de Velde was individually announced to the crowd before the match began.
All players shook hands before and after the match.
The Dutch pair are next in action on 31 July, when they face Chile’s Marco and Esteban Grimalt at 15:00 BST.
