US Olympic athlete accused of urinating on child in airplane

An elite American Olympic athlete was detained by a flight crew during a cross-country flight after allegedly urinating on a young child.

Early Wednesday morning on a Jet Blue flight from Mount Hood, Oregon to JFK Airport in New York City, an altercation broke out between US ski team member Robert Vietze, 18, and the father of an 11-year-old girl. The girl's father, a stage four cancer patient, says Vietze relieved himself on his daughter's leg. Flight crews escorted Vietze to the back of the plane and attempted to clean the mess with liquid soap from the bathroom. While the father took his two daughters, including the victim, to visit their grandmother, authorities met Vietze at JFK airport and took him into custody to issue him a federal summons before releasing him. Vietze told authorities he had consumed eight alcoholic beverages. According to the New York Post, he told reporters, "I was drunk, and I did not realize I was pissing on her leg." The prospect skier was returning home to Vermont after attending a training camp on the West coast. He was expected to represent the United States in the 2014 Winter Olympics. Those dreams, however, may be the one thing he did flush down the drain. Vietze's name was removed from the team's roster yesterday. "We have no comment, nothing to say," his mother told reporters outside the family's home. In spite of his immediate comments to reporters, Vietze has refused to apologize and has ignored further questioning from the media. Charges against him were dropped after the father of the 11-year-old girl refused to allow authorities to question her.