Speedo USA and three other companies on Monday dropped sponsorship deals involving U.S. swimmer Ryan Lochte -- seen here during a competition in Rio de Janeiro -- following a scandal in which the gold-medal winner claimed he had been robbed. Photo by Matthew Healey/UPI |
License Photo
WASHINGTON, Aug. 22 (UPI) -- Four companies on Monday announced that they are dropping their sponsorship deals with embattled U.S. swimmer Ryan Lochte following his statement over the weekend that he "over-exaggerated" what happened in Rio de Janeiro.
After maintaining for days that he and three teammates were robbed at gunpoint on their way to the Olympic Village on Aug. 14, Lochte admitted Saturday that he'd inflated some details of the story and apologized for his behavior -- which he said overshadowed the final days of the Olympic Games.
For days, many speculated that the ordeal might ultimately cost the 12-time Olympic medalist untold millions in endorsement contracts. Monday, four companies announced the end of their partnerships with Lochte -- Ralph Lauren, Speedo USA, Gentle Hair Removal and Japanese mattress company Airweave.
"While we have enjoyed a winning relationship with Ryan for over a decade ... we cannot condone behavior that is counter to the values this brand has long stood for. We appreciate his many achievements and hope he moves forward and learns from this experience," Speedo USA said in a statement, also noting that it would donate a $50,000 portion of Lochte's fee to Save the Children, a global charity partner for children in Brazil.
"I respect Speedo's decision and am grateful for the opportunities that our partnership has afforded me over the years. I am proud of the accomplishments that we have achieved together," Lochte told E! News Monday.
Speedo's decision was closely followed by three other companies that had agreements with the gold medal swimmer.
"We hold our employees to high standards, and we expect the same of our business partners," Gentle Hair Removal parent company Syneron-Candela said in a statement. "We wish Ryan well on his future endeavors and thank him for the time he spent supporting our brand."
"Our endorsement agreement with Ryan Lochte was in support of the 2016 Rio Olympic Games. After careful consideration, we have made the decision to end our partnership," Airweave USA said in its statement.
Ralph Lauren told CNBC Monday that it has declined to renew an agreement with the four-time U.S. Olympian.
It's unclear exactly how much money the four endorsement deals will cost Lochte.
The United States' second-most decorated Olympic swimmer after Michael Phelps, Lochte said in an interview with NBC that he took "full responsibility" for the incident, in which police said he vandalized a gas station while intoxicated after a night of partying. He also apologized on Twitter.
Surveillance video shows the swimmers going behind the gas station, coming back out, and then getting into the taxi as a security guard approaches. Another shows them outside of the taxi, sitting on the ground with their hands on their heads.
One of the guards admitted that he had drawn his gun on the swimmers, who were ultimately released after paying money to cover the cost of a damaged advertisement at the gas station.
Lochte and the other swimmers involved in the incident -- Gunnar Bentz, Jack Conger and Jimmy Feigen -- could be stripped of the gold medals they won in Rio.
