USA TODAY International Edition
Speedo, three other sponsors drop Lochte
Episode, fabrication costly for swimmer
Speedo was the first, announcing early Monday that it had dropped its sponsorship of embattled U. S. swimmer Ryan Lochte. By the end of the day, three other companies also said they would cut ties with him.
The decisions come after a week- long saga that led to Lochte and three other U. S. swimmers being questioned by Rio de Janeiro authorities after Lochte alleged they were robbed at gunpoint. Ralph Lauren and a laser hair removal company announced they also would sever their sponsor relationships with the 32- year- old.
“While we have enjoyed a win- ning relationship with Ryan for over a decade and he has been an important member of the Speedo team, we cannot condone the behavior that is counter to the values this brand has long stood for,” Speedo USA said in a statement.
Ralph Lauren, which outfitted Team USA for the opening and closing ceremonies, told CNBC on Monday that it would not renew its deal with Lochte, who was one of the highlighted athletes on the company’s website modeling Team USA gear.
Syneron- Candela, the parent company of Gentle Hair Removal where Lochte was a spokes-
man, confirmed to USA TODAY Sports that it had cut Lochte loose. Late Monday, mattress company Airweave said it had ended its partnership with him.
“We hold our employees to high standards, and we expect the same of our business partners,” 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.”
Speedo said it would donate a portion of Lochte’s $ 50,000 fee to global charity Save the Children.
Lochte originally told USA TODAY Sports that he and fellow U. S. swimmers Jack Conger, Gunnar Bentz and Jimmy Feigen were pulled over in a taxi by men with badges in the early- morning hours of Aug. 14. Lochte said the men robbed them, an account eventually called into question by Rio police and a judge who ordered the four to remain in the country Wednesday.
Lochte returned to the USA on Wednesday; Conger, Bentz and Feigen remained in Brazil to face questions about what occurred at the gas station where the incident took place. Police alleged the swimmers vandalized a bathroom and security guards at the station demanded the swimmers pay for the damage, which they did.
A USA TODAY Sports probe called into question police claims that the swimmers vandalized the gas station, aside from ripping down a loosely attached sign.
Lochte, in an interview with NBC last weekend, admitted he “overexaggerated” details.
“It’s how you want to make it look like, whether you call it a robbery, whether you call it extortion or us paying just for the damages, we don’t know,” Lochte told NBC’s Matt Lauer. “All we know is there was a gun pointed in our direction and we were demanded to give money.”
Last week, Speedo said it was following the incident and would not comment on an ongoing investigation.
Experts in the field of sponsorship and sports marketing expected fallout from Lochte’s sponsors as the 12- time Olympic medalist walked back parts of his armed robbery tale.
“In this day and age, there’s one pretty important rule that anybody in the public eye should think about: Don’t lie,” Joe Favorito, a sports marketing expert and professor at Columbia University, said on Friday. “We live in a world where everything is going to be exposed. Brands are always looking for honest and authentic representatives because there’s so much competition. There are so many Olympic athletes who you can choose from. You don’t need any nonsense.”
Bob Dorfman, a sports marketing expert and executive creative director for Baker Street Advertising, said Lochte was on the back end of his swimming career. He won one medal in the Rio Games, as part of a relay.
“Lochte’s shelf life was already limited as an endorser,” Dorfman said. “He’s now just fallen off the shelf.”