Pretty much everyone knows Ryan Lochte as the super attractive and super successful Olympic swimmer, second only to the legend himself, Michael Phelps. However, the twelve-time Olympic medalist found himself in some hot water with the Brazilian law officials after an incident following a party on a bad night in Rio.
Lochte and three other Team USA swimmers, Gunnar Bentz, Jack Conger, and James Feigen, were accused of vandalizing a gas station while intoxicated after a party in Rio. The boys were celebrating their successful run at the 2016 Olympics.
While being questioned by Brazilian police, Lochte claimed that they were forced out of their cab and robbed at gunpoint at the gas station in question. The accounts from the other three teammates differed from Lochte’s and the video surveillance cameras released by police told a story that was not what Lochte claimed happened. After the release of the videos, Lochte altered his story slightly to make it more of a match to what actually happened.
So what actually did happen?
According to surveillance videos and other witness testimonies, no robbery occurred at all. The four swimmers entered the gas station, vandalized the bathrooms, and urinated on the building from out back. Security guards approached them and drew their guns because the swimmers were conducting themselves in a violent manner. The security guards collected money from them to pay for the products that they damaged.
James Feigen, one of the swimmers involved in the altercation, left out crucial parts to the story in his first interrogation. After the surveillance videos were released, he was re-questioned by police and filled in the missing parts from his first account.
The Brazilian court proposed a $31,250 fine and 15 days of community service in Brazil, which Feigen and his attorneys rejected. The court then upped the fine to $46,875. Feigen and hist attorneys rejected this as well and settled on $10,800 (in American dollars) to be given to a charity in Brazil. This fee totals about $35,000 in Brazilian currency.
Now, what does this mean for Ryan Lochte?
Lochte potentially faces punishment from the United States Olympic committee and the International Olympic Committee. A copy of his indictment from Brazilian officials will be sent to the International Olympic Committee for an ethics review.
Speedo, Polo Ralph Lauren, Gentle Hair Removal, and Airweave Mattress company have dropped their sponsorships with Ryan Lochte.
Ralph Lauren signed with Ryan Lochte specifically for the 2016 Summer Olympics, and decided they would not be renewing their contract when it runs out. Airweave, a mattress company, provided the mattresses for Team USA in Rio de Janeiro and they also signed with Lochte specifically for the Olympics. After this incident, they ended their partnership immediately.
Ryan Lochte was the face of Gentle Hair Removal’s campaign since their signing in April, before getting the boot. Speedo decided to drop Lochte as well, and they issued a statement concerning the incident:
“While we have enjoyed a winning relationship with Ryan for over a decade and he has been an important member of the Speedo team, we cannot condone behavior that is counter to the values this brand has long stood for,” Speedo said in its statement. “We appreciate his many achievements and hope he moves forward and learns from this experience.”
This altercation dominated the Olympic headlines and took the spotlight off of the deserving athletes who accomplished their childhood dreams. The people of Brazil were not happy with the situation at hand, claiming that it “cast a pall” on their city and overall on their Olympics.
We don’t know what is in store for Lochte, but the future is not looking good for his career.
Sources:
http://www.cnn.com/2016/08/25/americas/ryan-lochte-brazil/
http://money.cnn.com/2016/08/22/news/companies/ryan-lochte-speedo/
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/ryan-lochte-breaks-silence-olympics-robbery-story/
http://etcanada.com/news/162238/ryan-lochte-charged-with-making-false-po…
https://www.yahoo.com/tech/m/1724ff5d-beb2-3fd6-ac01-fc7c723af54b/ss_rya…
http://deadline.com/2016/08/ryan-lochte-interview-olympics-ratings-new-l…
http://www.eonline.com/news/788913/swimmer-gunnar-bentz-apologizes-to-u-…
http://edition.cnn.com/2016/08/24/sport/james-feigen-apology-gas-station…