European Tour lifts Thorbjorn Olesen’s suspension after trial delayed due to COVID-19
After Thorbjorn Olesen’s criminal trial was pushed back until December 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the European Tour officially lifted its suspension on the Danish golfer on Thursday, according to ESPN.
Olesen was arrested last July after an incident on a British Airways flight that was taking him back to Europe after the World Golf Championships-FedEx St. June Invitational in Memphis, Tennessee. The 30-year-old finished in a tie for 27th at the event, which was the final WGC tournament of the year.
Olesen, who was sitting in first class, allegedly started arguing with passengers and the flight crew, urinated in the aisle of the plane and allegedly sexually assaulted a sleeping woman on the flight.
Police were waiting for Olesen and arrested him when the plane landed at Heathrow Airport in London. He was charged with sexual assault, common assault and being drunk on an aircraft, and pled not guilty to all three charges.
He was initially suspended by the European Tour “until the outcome of the trial.”
“Due to this significant and unparalleled delay in the legal process, the European Tour has agreed that his suspension be lifted with immediate effect, allowing him to compete while he continues to contest the case,” the European Tour said in a statement, via ESPN. “This will be reviewed following the conclusion of the legal process, but as this is an ongoing legal matter the European Tour will be making no further comment at this time.”
Olesen has won five times on the European Tour, most recently at the Italian Open in 2018. He has yet to win on the PGA Tour, though he has eight top-10 finishes and finished in a tie for third at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational in 2018, his best finish on Tour. Olesen, who finished 2019 ranked No. 92 in the world, is currently No. 166 in the World Golf Rankings.
It’s not clear when Olesen will play next.
“While my team and I initially agreed that I would not participate in Tour events while the legal proceedings were outstanding, I am naturally grateful to the European Tour for allowing me to continue my career following the lengthy adjournment of my trial,” Olesen said in a statement, via ESPN. “Obviously, the case itself is still ongoing so I will continue to make no comment about it.”
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