Former Team USA Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte has spoken out about the apparent rule that athletes are prohibited from leaving the Olympic Village at the 2024 Paris Summer Games. But in doing so, he has opened up a whole other issue, so to speak, about his misconduct at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Lochte's wife Kayla, ex Womaniser The “Playmate of the Month” was answering questions from fans on TikTok when the topic came up. “What do you mean you're not allowed to leave the Olympic Village?” one fan asked. “I see all kinds of Olympians leaving the Village.”
“Not the U.S. swimmers,” Lochte said off-camera. When asked why, he continued: “Because that’s the rule for the U.S. swimmers.” “The U.S. has stricter rules than other countries, right?” Kayla asked, and Lochte responded in the affirmative. When she later asked if athletes could be “segregated for certain things,” Lochte responded with the same, “No.”
“You need approval from the head coach,” he explained, for swimmers who may have days off and want to eat with their families in the city. However, he declined to give further details.
@kayla.lochte In reply to @mammaontherun #olympics #usa #swimming #village #olympicvillage #paris #paris2024
♬ original sound – Kayla Lochte
However, fans were quick to point out the so-called “Lochtegate” at the 2016 Summer Olympics. In the highly publicized incident, Lochte and teammates Jimmy Feigen, Gunnar Bentz and Jack Conger allegedly vandalized a convenience store restroom after a night out in Rio de Janeiro and lied to the media that they were held at gunpoint by “armed robbers posing as police officers.”
It was later revealed that the “armed robbers” were actually security guards, who had volunteered money after teammates had urinated outside a bathroom and tore down a framed poster. Lochte later admitted to making up part of the story and was charged with falsely reporting a crime in Brazil. He faced up to 18 months in prison if convicted, but the charges were later dropped.
Fans in the comments threw a fair amount of shade at Lochte and his wife. “Ryan Lochte knows why [because] Regarding his behavior in Brazil, one user wrote hahaha, while another added: “This seems like the Ryan Lochte rule.”
“Ryan, the reason they can’t go,” another user chimed in. “You’re not the one who asked a single question about the village, [this] “The human is responsible for responding,” read one of the comments directed at Kayla.
Lochte represented the United States at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, the 2012 Games in London, and the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro, winning a total of 12 medals: six gold, three silver, and three bronze. Although he competed at the 2020 U.S. Swimming Olympic Trials, which were postponed until June 2021 due to the pandemic, he ultimately finished seventh in the finals and did not qualify for Tokyo. All things considered, this was probably for the best.