Ex-Olympian's wife gives evidence in abuse case

Last updated 17:40 26/07/2010

The wife of a former New Zealand Olympian who is accused of beating and raping her told today how he smashed her face and strangled and forced her to have sex with him.

The man, whose name and occupation cannot be published, appeared in the High Court at Auckland today on 12 charges connected to the alleged abuse his wife between March and August 2008.

Giving evidence via video link, the woman described six separate incidents in which the man either beat or raped her, smashed her face on the steering wheel of her car as she was driving, strangled her to the point where she thought she would die, prised her legs open in order to have sex with her and forced her to perform oral sex.

The victim told the court she and the accused became engaged shortly after meeting and at first had a happy marriage.

But he became increasingly protective and jealous when she had anything to do with other men, forcing her to delete their phone numbers and forbidding her from seeing them.

The first time he hit her she thought it was a reflex reaction, a one off, but it continued to happen for the next six months until she contacted police and Women's Refuge.

The man's lawyer, Hugh Leabourn, said there was more than one side to the story.

While it was accepted that the accused got physical with his wife, it was never to the extent that she alleged.

"She gave him a substantial punch to the head and he reacted instinctively by slapping her across the face," he said.

On another occasion, she spat in his face, prompting him to push her.

"That is the extent of the physicality, the defence will argue."

While the couple had their fair share of troubles, they were also very loving and caring of each other and their relationship was not always punctuated by violence, he said.

The man denied that he had smashed her head into her steering wheel, or punched her as he smothered her face with a pillow, or forced her to perform oral sex, as is alleged.

The trial is expected to continue for the rest of the week.

From: http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/3957413/Ex-Olympian-beat-wife-then-asked-for-sex