So, Did Ryan Lochte Get Robbed in Rio Last Night?

It sure sounds like the gold medalist had a pretty rough night.

By Lucas Iberico Lozada  |  August 14, 2016 | 2:40pm
Photos courtesy Getty Images
Olympics News Ryan Lochte

Ryan Lochte, the American swimmer who won a gold medal in the 4×200 freestyle relay on Aug. 9, had a pretty weird way of telling the media—and the police—that he was robbed at gunpoint last night in Rio.

First, Ileana Lochte, Ryan’s mother, told a USA Today Sports reporter that her son and a teammate had their wallets snatched by a group of robbers armed with knives and guns at a gas station.

That claim was quickly disputed by Lochte’s coach, David Marsh, as well as IOC spokesman Mark Adams, who, the AP reported, had gotten his information from the US Olympic Committee and, apparently, Lochte himself.

Finally, NBC News “confirmed” that Lochte had indeed been robbed, along with four of his teammates. Their confirmation is based on an interview with Lochte himself, who offered the Today Show’s Billy Bush this truly bananas version of events:

“We got pulled over, in the taxi, and these guys came out with a badge, a police badge, no lights, no nothing just a police badge and they pulled us over,” Lochte said. “They pulled out their guns, they told the other swimmers to get down on the ground — they got down on the ground. I refused, I was like we didn’t do anything wrong, so — I’m not getting down on the ground.

“And then the guy pulled out his gun, he cocked it, put it to my forehead and he said, “Get down,” and I put my hands up, I was like ‘whatever.’ He took our money, he took my wallet — he left my cell phone, he left my credentials.”

No word yet on why it took Lochte so long to get his sullen hero’s story straight.

 
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