Speedo was the first company Monday morning to announce it was dropping sponsorship of USA swimmer Ryan Lochte.
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“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 behavior that is counter to the values this brand has long stood for”, it said.
The gold medallist’s other major sponsors are Airweave and Polo Ralph Lauren, and he is believed to have earned around m through endorsements during a career in which he has won six gold medals over four Olympics.
Rovell also notes that the Ralph Lauren endorsement deal was the most significant financially, but it was to expire after the Olympics and the company simply decided not to renew it.
Syneron-Candela offers skin-treatment products that deal with body contouring, wrinkle reduction, acne and vein care, as well as tattoo removal.
“We hold our employees to high standards, and we expect the same of our business partners”, the company said.
Lochte issued a brief statement through his public relations firm addressing his long relationship with Speedo. “After careful consideration, we have made the decision to end our partnership with Ryan Lochte”, the company said in a statement released via Twitter.
Global swimwear brand Speedo and U.S. fashion label Ralph Lauren topped the list of companies that ended their relationships with the 32-year-old Lochte, with the former noting his actions had not reflected the “values” it wished to promote.
Lochte claimed he and three of his U.S. team-mates had been robbed at gunpoint at a gas station on a night out in Rio earlier this month.
“They (the people of Rio) put on a great Games”.
Feigen wound up donating just under $11,000 to a Brazilian nonprofit sports organization to settle any potential legal action.
But on Monday the company said it was ending its partnership with the embattled US swimmer. Lochte had initially claimed the four men were victims of an armed robbery during a taxi ride, but local authorities and surveillance video revealed Lochte had fabricated the story; the men had actually vandalized a gas station bathroom while intoxicated, and armed security guards forced them to pay for the damage.
“That’s why I’m taking full responsibility for it”, he told NBC News in a clip posted online. “If I had never done that, we wouldn’t be in this mess”.
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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.. He also starred in a short-lived reality television show after the 2012 Olympics.
