Olympic swimmers Ryan Lochte, Jimmy Feigen, Gunnar Bentz and Jack Conger did not have a gun drawn on them by a security guard or anyone else in the early hours of Sunday morning, according to a report.
A Brazilian police official told The Associated Press on Thursday that Lochte lied about being robbed at gunpoint after the four swimmers paid for damages they caused at a gas station. The official said the men stopped at a gas station and tried to open the door to an outside bathroom, but it was locked. The athletes then allegedly pushed on the door and broke it, at which point they were confronted by a security guard.
The security guard was armed with a gun but reportedly never drew it. When the gas station manager arrived, he spoke with the four swimmers through a translator. The police source says the swimmers agreed to pay the manager an unknown amount of money and then left.
Rio Olympics spokesman Mario Andrada said Thursday morning that Lochte and his three teammates “made a mistake” and should be forgiven.
#Rio2016 spokesman Mario Andrada on Lochte incident: "Let's give these kids a break. They had fun. They made a mistake. Life goes on."
— Shira Springer (@ShiraSpringer) August 18, 2016
While destroying the bathroom door is not a good look, it would pale in comparison with lying about having a gun pointed at your head. For what it’s worth, Lochte has changed some key details of his story throughout the week. We know one reason the swimmers might not remember exactly what happened, but it’s sounding like they were simply trying to cover for themselves.
UPDATE: A new report claims two security guards did point their guns at the swimmers.
