Dutch Olympic beach volleyball player Steven van de Velde, 31, has been denied entry to Australia to compete in next month’s world championships in Adelaide.

Van de Velde pleaded guilty to assaulting a 12-year-old British girl, whom he had contacted on social media when he was 19.

He was sentenced to four years in prison for the 2014 assault but served 13 months before returning to his career in 2017.

Permitted to play at the Paris Olympics last year, van de Velde was housed separately from other athletes and faced boos from the crowd during matches.

News of his potential participation in Australia emerged earlier this month, prompting victim advocate groups to call for denial of his visa. The Dutch Volleyball Association (DVA) confirmed overnight that van de Velde had been blocked fro

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