Team GB swimmer who competed at London 2012 found guilty of eight child sex offences | Other | Sport

A former Team GB swimmer who competed at London 2012 is facing jail time after being found guilty of raping two teenage girls. Antony James, 34, was convicted by a jury of eight offences in total including three charges of rape.

The ex-Olympic swimmer was found guilty of three rape offences, three counts of engaging in sexual activity with a child and two charges of causing or inciting a child into sexual activity.

James was cleared of three other charges, with the jury failing to return verdicts on six other charges which included five counts of rape. He had denied all charges.

The court heard the alleged offences took place over a decade-long period between 2012 and 2022. James, from Plymouth, had been working as a trainee police officer at the time of his arrest.

He was immediately suspended by the Devon and Cornwall force, who have confirmed that he no longer works for them.

The court heard that James was a friendly and often charming man but the prosecution said he was also ‘a serial liar and manipulator’.

Lee Bremridge, prosecuting, told the court that James had ‘sexual needs and desires’ which became ‘increasingly more twisted and perverse as time went on’. The court heard that his victims were younger than 16 years of age when he first met them.

Bremridge added: “Please don’t assume that these were normal loving relationships. How could they be?”

One of the victims, who met James when they were 13 years old, said during a police interview played in court: “There were many times I had sex with him [when] I didn’t want to. I felt like I was leaving my body. I was just waiting for it to be over.”

The victim also claimed they felt ‘pushed and violated’ by James and was afraid that he would ‘get angry’.

James was granted conditional bail ahead of a sentencing hearing, which will take place following the completion of a pre-sentence report. The judge told him to expect a ‘substantial prison sentence’ for the crimes he was found guilty of.