The Dutch Olympian who spent more than a year in prison for raping a 12-year-old girl was repeatedly booed by spectators before he and his teammate lost their first beach volleyball match on Sunday.
But some spectators applauded Steven van de Velde, 29, whose participation in the Paris Games has sparked global controversy.
"Being an athlete shouldn't give you a free pass," attendee Melissa Gautier, a 23-year-old health worker, told Reuters.
German architect Alexandra Bertram, 46, disagreed, saying: "I read about this and I think everyone deserves a second chance."
"He's [legally] allowed to be here and so he can be here," Bertram added.
Van de Velde and teammate Matthew Immers lost 22-20, 19-21, 15-13 to Italy's Alex Ranghieri and Adrian Ignacio Carambula.
Their next match is Wednesday against Chile.
In a break with Olympic tradition, van de Velde — who has called his 2014 crime "the biggest mistake of my life" — didn't speak to reporters following Sunday's contest at the direction of his team, the Associated Press reported.
But a spokesperson for the Dutch team fielded tough questions, including whether it was protecting a convicted child rapist.
"We are protecting a convicted child rapist to do his sport as best as possible and for a tournament which he qualified for," said John van Vliet.
He also described van de Velde as a "person who has been convicted, who did his sentence, who did everything afterwards which he can do to be able to compete again."
Immers said his teammate's criminal history was "not good, of course," but said he thought van de Velde was a "really good example from how he is right now."
"I am enjoying it very much to play with him. What is in the past is in the past. He had his ... punishment and now he's really, really kind. For me, that's a big example that you grew," Immers said.
An International Olympic Committee spokesperson said the issue of whether van de Velde should compete was up to the Netherlands.
"Not to excuse it in any way but this took place, I think, 10 years ago, and I think, as a general rule I think we need to allow for the possibility of rehabilitation," Mark Adams told reporters at the IOC's daily news conference.
in 2016, van de Velde pleaded guilty in Britain to raping a girl he traveled to meet following months of correspondence on social media after she sent him a friend request..
He was sentenced to four years in prison and was incarcerated in Britain for one year before being returned to the Netherlands under terms of a treaty.
Van de Velde served another month in a Dutch prison before being released in accordance with a more lenient Dutch law governing his actions.
