Kiwi athlete who avoided sex offence conviction ‘not in contention’ for Paris Olympics despite claim he put ‘dream aside’

Only three in 10 cases of sexual assault reported to police will make it to court, and only one gets convicted. Photo / 123rf

A Kiwi athlete granted a discharge without conviction after pleading guilty to a sex offence was “not in contention” for the next Olympics, despite claiming in court he had to put his dream aside.

Earlier this year, the man in his 20s pleaded guilty to a having sexual connection with a teen and intentionally exposing her to indecent images and sexual communication.

His lawyer, Hugo Porter, argued on behalf of his client in the Wellington District Court last week that the “nature of the convictions are such as he’s put the Olympic dream aside”.

However, the chief executive of the body that represents the sport the man was active in told the Herald the man was not a member of the organisation when he was charged last year, nor was he in contention for the Paris Olympic Games next year.

The Crown submitted in court there was no independent evidence to support the submission he was eligible for the Olympics or that this was even a realistic opportunity.

Porter told the Herald today it would be inappropriate to comment within the potential appeal period.

During the case, Porter successfully advocated for his client to be discharged without conviction and receive permanent name suppression, stating the impact of a conviction far outweighed the gravity of the offending.

“Convictions and publication would be permanently damaging, and perhaps that’s putting it lightly,” he told the court.

Prosecutor Claire Hislop had argued for the man to be convicted and have his identity revealed.

She said the offending was serious and the “very high” threshold for both applications, in her assessment, wasn’t met.

Judge Bruce Davidson told the sportsman that being convicted would be a “crushing blow” to future prospects in his life.

“The gravity of offending, viewed as a whole, is relatively low, but [the] consequences of conviction for you are quite grave, and in my view, out of all proportion to the offending itself,” he said.

The victim’s mother, who is also a lawyer, told the Herald last week she was furious with the decision after having told her daughter that the justice system worked.

“It tells young women men can do whatever they like,” she said of the decision to grant a discharge.

In her opinion, she said: “I can no longer encourage young people to go to the police when terrible things happen to them. It’s kind of shaken my view of that as well. I thought the right outcome would be reached and it wasn’t.”

Katie Harris is an Auckland-based journalist who covers social issues including sexual assault, workplace misconduct, crime and justice. She joined the Herald in 2020.