Rugby union player Kurtley Beale changed over alleged sexual assault at popular Bondi bar
Australian rugby union player Kurtley Beale has been charged over an alleged sexual assault in Sydney’s east last year.
A 28-year-old woman was allegedly sexually assaulted at the Beach Road Hotel in Bondi Beach on Saturday, December 17, 2022.
Police investigating the matter today arrested 33-year-old Beale as he left training with the NSW Waratahs, stopping his car on Rainbow Street, Kingsford, around 2.30pm.
The new father was taken to Waverley Police Station where he was charged with two counts of sexually touch another person without consent, incite another to sexually touch them without consent and sexual intercourse without consent.
Beale was refused bail and will appear before Parramatta Bail Court tomorrow.
Shortly after NSW Police revealed the charges against Beale, Rugby Australia announced his suspension from all forms of the game in a joint statement alongside the NSW Waratahs.
“Rugby Australia and the NSW Waratahs advise that Kurtley Beale has been suspended from all forms of Rugby with immediate effect pending the conclusion of legal proceedings, as well as Rugby Australia’s own investigations,” a statement issued on Friday night said.
“This step follows Mr Beale’s arrest and subsequent charge with serious criminal offences, and is in line with Rugby Australia’s Professional Player Code of Conduct. The Rugby Union Players Association (RUPA) has been informed of this development.
“As this remains a legal matter, there will be no further comment until the conclusion of these proceedings.”
Beale is one of Australian rugby’s highest-profile players of the past decade. He made his international debut for the Wallabies in 2009, and has since earned more than 90 Test caps.
He was part of the Waratahs’ Super Rugby-winning squad in 2014 and represented the Wallabies at three Rugby World Cups – 2011, 2015 and 2019.
His international career seemed to have come to an end following the 2019 campaign, when he left Super Rugby to join French side Racing 92.
However, he made a comeback two years later in 2021 for a Test against Scotland.
He has since rejoined the Waratahs for the 2023 Super Rugby season, and earlier this month was one of 44 players selected for a four-day Wallabies training camp on the Gold Coast.
