Ryan Lochte punished for drunken gas station encounter during Olympics – CBS News

Ryan Lochte is banned from swimming through next June and
will forfeit $100,000 in bonus money that went with his gold medal at the
Olympics, part of the penalty for his drunken encounter at a gas station in
Brazil during last month’s games.

The U.S. Olympic Committee and USA Swimming announced the
penalties Thursday. Lochte agreed to a ban that will also render him ineligible
for world championships next July because he won’t be able to qualify for them
at nationals the previous month.

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He’ll get no monthly funding from either organization,
can’t access USOC training centers, must perform 20 hours of community service and
will miss Team USA’s post-Olympics trip to the White House.

Agreeing to four-month suspensions were Gunnar Bentz, Jack
Conger and Jimmy Feigen, who were with Lochte at the gas station. Those
sanctions, which end Dec. 31, also strip funding and training access and
preclude them from the White House visit.

Bentz, 20, will also serve 10 hours of community service
for violating a curfew rule for athletes under 21.

“As we have said previously, the behavior of these
athletes was not acceptable. It unfairly maligned our hosts and diverted
attention away from the historic achievements of Team USA,” USOC CEO Scott
Blackmun said. “Each of the athletes has accepted responsibility for his
actions and accepted the appropriate sanctions.”

The USOC gives a $25,000 bonus to Olympic gold-medal
winners, and USA Swimming has awarded a $75,000 gold-medal bonus at past
Olympics.

But that money pales in comparison to what Lochte lost
last month when key sponsors , including Speedo USA and Ralph Lauren, abandoned
the 32-year-old in the wake of his actions at the gas station, then his rapidly
changing accounts of what really happened. Estimates have put the financial hit
for those losses at around $1 million.

While the near-10-month suspension is four months longer
than the one Michael Phelps received in 2014 for his second DUI, the ouster
from next year’s world championships isn’t considered major, in part because
those championships typically attract a lesser field in the year after the
Olympics.

Swimming’s international federation, FINA, called the
sanctions “proportionate, adequate and sufficient,” and said it had
no plans to augment them.

Despite his embarrassment, Lochte has maintained a high
profile, posting regularly on social media and accepting a spot on the upcoming
season of “Dancing With The Stars.”

Last month, Brazilian police charged Lochte with filing a
false robbery report, but Lochte has not said whether he’ll return to Brazil to
defend himself.

Lochte’s gold in the 4×200 freestyle relay was one of 121
overall medals the United States won at the Olympics, yet his actions at the
gas station overshadowed a large portion of the second half of the Olympics.

The International Olympic Committee’s ethics commission is
also looking into the incident.

“When Code of Conduct infractions occur, it’s our
responsibility to take action that reflects the seriousness of what
happened,” USA Swimming executive director Chuck Wielgus said.
“Unfortunately, this storyline took attention away from the athletes who deserved
it the most.”