Speedo drops Ryan Lochte after Olympic swimmer’s Rio scandal

Ryan Lochte’s Olympic-sized lie in Rio has cost him his first sponsorship deal.

Speedo announced Monday that it has dropped the U.S. swimmer since it “cannot condone behavior that is counter to the values this brand has long stood for.”


Speedo USA will also donate a $50,000 portion of Lochte’s fee to Save The Children, which is a global charity partner of the parent company, for children in Brazil, the company said.

Lochte, along with U.S. swim teammates Jimmy Feigen, Jack Conger and Gunnar Bentz had claimed they were robbed at gunpoint by men posing as cops while heading back to Olympic Village in a taxi on Aug. 14.

However, after an investigation, Rio police concluded that the athletes were drunk, vandalized a gas station and were detained by armed security until they paid for the damage they caused.

Initially, Lochte — who made it out of the country before officials held his teammates for further questioning — offered a vague apology.

During an interview with NBC’s Matt Lauer on Saturday, the 12-time Olympic medalist admitted the “over-exagerated” the robbery tale.

“I over-exaggerated that story, and if I had never done that, we wouldn’t be in this mess,” Lochte said. “None of this would have happened. It was my immature behavior.”
Speedo, which has has a sponsorship deal with Lochte for “over a decade,” said in its statement that it “appreciates his many achievements and hope he moves forward and learns from this experience.”