The Olympic games may be over, but the controversy is not. Ryan Lochte has already lost four of his major sponsors: Ralph Lauren and Speedo amongst them. Lochte along with fellow US swimmers: Gunnar Bentz, Jack Conger, and James Feigen fabricated a robbery story while in Rio. The group claimed that they had been approached by people impersonating cops who allegedly held a gun to their head and demanded their money.
Rio police discredited these claims, with evidence that the swimmers had actually vandalized property at a gas station. The swimmers urinated behind the building on plants and Lochte ripped a poster from a wall. Actual police did approach them while armed and insisted on money to cover the damages of the vandalism.
While a scandal looks bad for the US, a scandal would look especially bad for Rio, as they were the Olympic hosts. That being said, it would not be shocking to discover that the true story is somewhere in between that of the US swimmers and the Rio cops. However, evidence does suggest the brunt of the scandal is on US shoulders.
The immaturity of the individuals involved in the case reflected poorly on the United States. On an international platform, such as the Olympics in Rio, it's kinda hard to 'forgive and forget'. The fact that major sponsors have already withdrawn their support may be a sign that once flourishing careers may begin to sink.
Perhaps this is a needed reminder that Olympians are everyday people who are extraordinarily athletic. Their excellence in their sports does not guarantee that they are an excellent human being.
Lochte is actually expected to return to Brazil to stand trial.
