Within hours of the Games coming to a close, Speedo USA issued a statement saying it would drop Lochte as one of its endorsers, while Ralph Lauren Corp said it would not be renewing its contract with the swimmer.
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Swimsuit U.S.A. brand, Speedo, ended up its relationships with the swimmer and stated Lochte’s actions in Rio can not be accepted in the ethical and moral framework of the company.
(AP) – Because of his out of the pool actions during the Olympics, swimmer Ryan Lochte has seen three sponsors drop him today.
“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 can not condone behaviour that is counter to the values that this brand has long stood for. We appreciate his many achievements and hope he moves forward and learns from this experience”.
Ryan Lochte was able to get out of Rio and away from trouble, and the companies that endorse him were able to get away as well.
Syneron Candela, a hair removal company, also cancelled its sponsorship of the swimmer.
And Syneron Candela said in a statement to ESPN: “We hold our employees to high standards, and we expect the same of our business partners”. However, both emphasized that they would still continue to support other athletes at both the Olympics and Paralympics. “I think we ended up in the right place in terms of being able to shine a light on what really happened there”.
Lochte, 32, won one gold medal at the Rio Olympics.
Speedo were the first company to end a relationship with Lochte, announcing the decision in a statement on Monday. He might also face criminal charges in Brazil. On August 14, Lochte and three other US swimmers destroyed a sign at a gas station.
The decision comes after the six-time Olympic gold medallist apologised for “over-exaggerating” claims he and teammates Gunnar Bentz, Jack Conger and Jimmy Feigen were the victims of an armed robbery following a party in Rio de Janeiro on 14 August.
Video surveillance has emerged showing the swimmers getting into a confrontation with armed security guards over alleged vandalism at a gas station where their taxi stopped.
After issuing a written apology that was widely ridiculed online as half-hearted, Lochte admitted in an interview with NBC aired Saturday that he had “left details out” and “overexaggerated some parts of the story”.
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“They let down our athletes”, he said.
