Feigen details how he escaped Brazil
Swimmer apologizes for omitting crucial information
Gold-medal winner James Feigen, now safely back in Texas, has apologized for his role in the Ryan Lochte incident at the Rio Olympic Games, describing in detail negotiations by his attorneys for his release by Brazilian authorities.
Feigen, 26, apologized for the “serious distractions” from the Games that the incident caused as it devoured news cycles in the U.S., then supplied his version of what happened on that embarrassing night out in Rio and how he came to pay nearly $11,000 before leaving the country Saturday.
Feigen explained that the foursome, which also included Jack Conger and Gunnar Bentz, did not initially tell authorities that, when they stopped at a gas station to use the restroom and found it locked,
they had urinated in bushes and that Lochte had pulled a framed poster off the wall.
Lochte, in his first interview on the subject, described having a gun held to his forehead. He later apologized for “overexaggerating” what happened as the four were returning to the Olympic Village after a party at around 5 a.m. Aug. 14.
Feigen describes what happened after the four hopped into a taxi:
“On our way back we asked the cab driver to pull over so we could relieve ourselves. We pulled over to a gas station to use the bathroom but the door was locked. We did not force entry into the bathroom, nor did we ever enter the bathroom. We did, however, make the regrettable decision to urinate in the grass behind the building.
“On our way back to the cab, Ryan Lochte pulled a poster in a metal frame off a wall. I got back into the cab and waited for the others. One of my teammates told me that a man with a gun was standing outside the cab. The man with the gun spoke with the cab driver, who got out of the cab. We then got out of the cab and I paid the driver the fare. As I walked away, the man with the gun pointed it at me and my teammate and ordered us, in Portuguese, to sit. This was the first time I have ever had a gun pointed at me and I was terrified.
“I put my hands up and sat down on the curb. It became apparent that the man with the gun was telling us to pay, and I was unsure if they were affiliated with the gas station. Gunnar Bentz and I gave the man some money. We were then allowed to leave and we took another cab to the Village, arriving around 7 a.m. Later that day, a Rio police detective came to the USA House to take a statement. Since I was the only person available, I was told by a USOC official to provide a statement.”
Feigen first describes the omission of the information that Lochte pulled a poster off a wall as a mistake caused by a language barrier, but then goes on to say he “was trying to protect” his teammates by “omitting these facts.”
“This statement was written by the officers in Portuguese, and I was then asked to sign the statement without seeing it translated into English,” his statement says. “I realize that I made a mistake by omitting these facts. I was trying to protect my teammates and for this I apologize.”
Feigen said that Brazilian prosecutors gave him the option of paying a fine or waiting a month while an investigation was conducted, so he agreed to pay a fine to a charity. Initially, he says, prosecutors wanted $31,500 (in American dollars) and 15 days of community service in exchange for the return of his passport, which he says he had voluntarily provided. When his American attorney rejected that amount, the fine was raised to nearly $47,000.
“Finally, all parties agreed to a R$35,000.00 ($10,800.00 USD) fine. This fine was to be paid within three days. If it was not paid, the fine would be increased back to R$150,000.00 ($46,875). I was able to contact my family in the United States along with my American attorneys and we were able to satisfy the payment of the fine the next day. My passport was returned to me after payment was received, and I was able to return home.”
Feigen, like the others, now waits to learn what discipline may be handed down and whether it will be limited to Lochte, who is 32 and seemingly at the end of his career. Scott Blackmun, CEO of the U.S. Olympic Committee, promised “further action” on Sunday and The Associated Press reported that the International Olympic Committee and USA Swimming could both sanction Lochte, though one IOC member “said it’s possible that Olympic officials could simply decide to let the USOC handle the matter.”