U.S Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte apologized Friday for his behavior surrounding an early-morning incident at a Rio de Janeiro gas station, saying he should have been more “careful and candid” about how he described what happened after a night of partying with his teammates.
Advertisement
United States’ Kami Craig takes a shot as Italy’s Federica Radicchi defends during women’s gold medal water polo match at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Friday, Aug. 19, 2016.
Lochte, a multiple olympic champion claimed he and his teammembers were robbed at gunpoint last Sunday.
But Lochte didn’t explain why he embellished details of an encounter with armed security guards and called it a robbery or why he omitted to say that he and three team-mates had vandalised the service station’s toilet.
Lochte’s statement, posted on Instagram, followed an apology to the games’ organizers and the people of Brazil by the U.S. Olympic Committee on Thursday night.
The drama – and ever-changing descriptions of the alleged robbery – deeply angered Brazilians, who said it cast a pall on their city and their Olympics. But he said the athletes wanted to leave, so they paid 100 Brazilian reals (about United States $33) and $20 in USA currency and left. Jack Conger and Gunnar Bentze were originally not allowed to leave the country, as they were taken off a plane to America to be questioned, but they left Brazil yesterda.
On Thursday, police provided CCTV footage and other evidence about what really happened. But two men with guns – security guards at the gas station – approached the auto, brandished their weapons and prevented them from leaving, Bentz said. “The images do not show any kind of violence against them”.
But, after earning more notoriety for allegedly lying to Brazilian police than their performance in the pool, sponsors are now unlikely to put their dollars behind them, said Matt Delzell at The Marketing Arm, an Omnicom Group Inc agency that advises brands on sports endorsements. Police said a bathroom door and a soap dispenser were also damaged. His attorney said he would make a $10,800 payment to a Rio charity that teaches martial arts to poor children after the incident, and was expected to leave the country shortly.
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 water polo team now holds each of the major titles in the sport, adding a second Olympic gold to its world championship, World Cup and World League Super Final titles. Veloso said the guards did not use excessive force and would have been justified in drawing their weapons because the athletes “were conducting themselves in a violent way”. “It is not representative of what is expected as Olympians, as Americans, as swimmers and as individuals”. The group of swimmers, which also included Jimmy Feigen, 26, then got out of the auto.
Advertisement
Rio is plagued by violent crime and Brazil has deployed 85,000 police and soldiers to secure the Olympics.
