MELBOURNE • Australian swimming coach Scott Volkers, a former mentor to Olympic and world champions, has been arrested and charged with multiple counts of child abuse, state media reported.

He was arrested on Friday and is due to appear in court next month in the state of Queensland, the report said.

"A 59-year-old Sunshine Coast man has today been charged with five counts of indecent treatment of a child," Queensland police said in a statement.

"The man was arrested by State Crime Command's Child Abuse and Sexual Crime Group. He will appear in the Maroochydore Magistrates Court on Nov 13, 2017."

Local media said he would fight the charges.

"It's been 15 years I've been subject to this," News Ltd media quoted him as saying.

Volkers coached two-time Olympic champion Susie O'Neill and two-time world breaststroke champion Sam Riley.

He was arrested in Australia in 2002 on charges of indecent behaviour. The charges were dropped for lack of evidence, but he was banned from working with children under the age of 16.

He has consistently denied the allegations against him.

He moved to Brazil in 2011 and became the swimming coach at the Minas Tennis Club in Belo Horizonte, which has produced some of Brazil's best swimmers.

He coached Brazil's Olympic gold medallist Cesar Cielo, but was excluded from the Brazilian team at the Rio Olympics last year at the request of the Australian Olympic Committee.

REUTERS