Lochte, Gunnar Bentz, Jack Conger and Jimmy Feigen claimed they were robbed at gunpoint at a gas station in suburban Rio after a night out.
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The International Olympic Committee is to start a disciplinary inquiry into Usa swimmer Ryan Lochte and three of his teammates. Mr Lochte tweeted: “I should have been more responsible in how I handled myself and for that I am sorry”.
“At this point, it seems as though the story is limited to the individual athletes involved, and hopefully it will soon give way to other, more positive stories coming out of Rio”, Carlisle said.
The public had awaited Lochte’s response after the release of closed-circuit TV footage Thursday that appeared to support at least some of the police’s assertions.
Lochte, who won gold for the 4200m freestyle relay with Michael Phelps, Conor Dwyer and Townley Haas, said: “I am very proud to represent my country in the Olympic competition and this was a situation that could and should have been avoided”.
Bentz also said he is “confident” that some video angles that would substantiate his account have either not been released by Rio authorities or were skipped over.
Feigen did not join Gunnar Bentz and Jack Conger when they left Thursday night because he was ordered to donate nearly $11,000 to a local sports charity before charges against him would be dropped.
The decision was made, police said, in a court appearancse to answer accusations that the swimmers had made false claims they were robbed.
“There was no restroom inside, so we foolishly relieved ourselves on the backside of the building behind some bushes”, Bentz said in a statement issued via the University of Georgia, where he attends college.
Police removed Bentz and Conger from their plane as it prepared to depart Rio, but after providing their testimony, the two men were allowed to fly home to the U.S.
Armed security guards then challenged the swimmers and one of them drew a gun and demanded they sit down, but Lochte then stood up and yelled at one of the guards, Bentz said, adding that he and team mate Jack Conger had tried to restrain him. The swimmers started an argument with staff at the station, who demanded payment for the damage, police added.
“It’s relatively hard for any swimmer to break out and to attract sponsors, but if you couple it with how they all corroborated a fabricated story, it’s a black eye”, Delzell said.
Feigen was brought before a judge and ordered first to pay 35,000 reais ($10,800) to a charitable institution in order to be freed, police confirmed.
The swimmers then handed over Brazilian and USA currency totalling about $50 to Deluz, who said he gave the money to a security guard, who then passed it to a gas station employee.
First, they learned on social media that four Americans had reportedly been mugged – a story Lochte told in hair-raising detail to the U.S. media – civil police Chief Fernando Veloso said at a news conference Thursday. Shifting accounts in TV interviews and social media posts. “Their claim that they are a victim of an assault or robbery or any kind of violence is not true”.
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“Lochte apologizes but doesn’t admit lying”, said Rodrigo Mattos, a sports commentator for UOL, one of Brazil’s largest news websites.
