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Lochte apologizes for behavior in Rio

by Jesse Byrnes - 08/19/16 10:38 AM ET

U.S. Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte on Friday issued a formal apology after being accused of fabricating a story about being robbed at gunpoint during the Rio Games.

“I want to apologize for my behavior last weekend — for not being more careful and candid in how I described the events of that early morning and for my role in taking the focus away from the many athletes fulfilling their dreams of participating in the Olympics,” the 12-time Olympic medalist said in a statement posted to his Instagram account.

{mosads}”I waited to share these thoughts until it was confirmed that the legal situation was addressed and it was clear that my teammates would be arriving home safely,” he said.

Lochte seemed to stick by his account of an early morning robbery Sunday at a gas station in Rio De Janeiro after leaving a party, an account police in Rio have questioned. The swimmers were seen on video at the gas station, which police said they vandalized.

“It’s traumatic to be out late with your friends in a foreign country — with a language barrier — and have a stranger point a gun at you and demand money to let you leave,” Lochte said, “but regardless of the behavior of anyone else that night, I should have been much more responsible in how I handled myself and for that I am sorry.”

“I accept responsibility for my role in this happening and have learned some valuable lessons,” he continued.

Two other U.S. swimmers involved in the ordeal, Jack Conger and Gunnar Bentz, arrived in Miami from Brazil early on Friday, according to Reuters.

Lochte was back in the U.S. early this week, his attorney said, before a Brazilian judge ordered that he and James Feigen stay in the country to answer questions.

Feigen was still in Brazil on Friday but hoped to secure the release of his passport, Reuters reported.

Pressure had been mounting on Lochte to issue an apology after his detailed account of being robbed at gunpoint by men posing as police was challenged by law enforcement in Rio.

“They were not victims of the criminal actions that they claimed they were,” Rio’s civil police chief, Fernando Veloso, said at a news conference on Thursday.

“Apologize, make your amends, and put it aside and hopefully that will be the case. Because this is an incident that’s going to escalate,” Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) said on CNN.

The mayor of Rio told reporters that he had accepted the apology issued by the U.S. Olympic Committee on Thursday night, according to CNN, which came the night Conger and Bentz left Rio.

Tags Dianne Feinstein Rio Games