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Ryan Lochte Rio Robbery Scandal: USOC Says Further Action Is Coming, ‘They Let Down Americans’

Ryan Lochte
Ryan Locate at the U.S. Swim Team Press Conference, Australia.Faith Moran / Splash News

The trouble may not be over yet. Further action is coming in the wake of Ryan Lochte and his three fellow swimmers’ Rio gas station incident, according to the U.S. Olympic Committee.

The Associated Press reported on Sunday, August 21, that USOC CEO Scott Blackmun said disciplinary action against the athletes is on the way, but did not specify further. The news outlet also reported that Blackmun “made no effort to hide his frustration with the matter.”

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“They let down our athletes,” Blackmun told the AP. “They let down Americans. People are going to remember the incident, but that doesn’t define the Games.”

As previously reported, Lochte, 32, caused a media uproar last week after he embellished a story in which he claimed he and teammates Gunnar Bentz, Jack Conger and James Feigen were robbed at gunpoint at a Rio gas station.

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“I left details out, and that’s why I’m in this mess,” the 12-time Olympic medalist admitted on Saturday, August 20 to NBC's Matt Lauer in his first sit-down TV interview since the incident. Lochte also revealed he was “still intoxicated” when he first claimed he was robbed.

Following days of inconsistent accounts, Rio police revealed on Thursday, August 18, that the four athletes were simply confronted by security guards at the gas station and were asked to pay for the damage they left in a bathroom.

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“I’m just really sorry and I hope [the people of Rio] can accept my apology,” Lochte added.

According to the Associated Press, Blackmun said on Sunday that Lochte’s story harmed Brazil by taking the attention away from the 2016 Summer Olympics.

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