USA swimmer Ryan Lochte has broken his silence, issuing an apology on Friday (Aug 19) for claiming he was robbed at gunpoint last Sunday in Rio De Janeiro after a night of partying.
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The disciplinary commission for Lochte, Jimmy Feigen, Gunnar Bentz and Jack Conger will “investigate and hear all sides”, International Olympic Committee spokesman Mark Adams said Friday evening.
Prosecutors were considering relatively minor charges of falsely reporting a crime and destruction of property, as recommended by police.
One day after the head of the U.S. Olympic Committee issued a formal apology to Rio and Brazil over his and others’ behavior, swimming star Ryan Lochte says he should have been more careful and candid.
Two other athletes – Jack Conger and Gunnar Bentz – were removed by police from a plane before it was due to depart. Feigen promised to make a $10,800 payment to a charity as restitution, and was expected to get his passport back.
“As we understand it, the four athletes (Bentz, Conger, [James] Feigen and Ryan Lochte) left France House early in the morning of August 14 in a taxi headed to the Olympic Village”.
The statement made no mention of Police Chief Fernando Veloso’s contention that off-duty police officers working as security guards had been the ones who’d pointed a gun at the drunken USA swimmers when they tried to flee after vandalizing a gas station bathroom.
“But regardless of the behaviour of anyone else that night, I should have been much more responsible in how I handled myself, and for that I am sorry to my teammates, my fans, my fellow competitors, my sponsors and the hosts of this great event”. He said Friday he wanted to speak until the legal situation was addressed and his teammates were allowed to come home.
A station employee called police, and the guards and employees tried to get the swimmers and a taxi driver to stay until authorities arrived, some even offering to help interpret between English and Portuguese, Veloso said.
Surveillance video from the gas station, taken shortly after 6 a.m. Sunday, appears to confirm the police chief’s version of events. “They did not represent the American athletes that are here”.
Bentz and Conger told police that Lochte lied about the situation in media interviews, according to text of the statements released by Rio police.
Lauer told Lochte that his story had morphed from one about “the mean streets or Rio” to a negotiated settlement to cover up dumb behavior.
In an interview with the Associated Press, a Brazilian who stepped in at the gas station to mediate the conflict between the swimmers and guards said there was no gun pointed at the swimmers during the encounter. He said he refused to get on the ground like the rest of his teammates and a gun was cocked and put to his forehead.
While he’s medaled often, Lochte’s accomplishments have always been overshadowed by teammate Michael Phelps – the most decorated Olympian in history. He apologized to “the people of Brazil for this distracting ordeal in the midst of what should rightly be a celebration of excellence”.
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While Lochte had already left Rio before police sought him, Bentz and Conger weren’t so fortunate.
