The encyclopedia · Advertising & PR · Marketing decision · 2016
Speedo ended its Lochte deal after Rio police called his robbery story a fabrication
A robbery tale that police called a fabrication cost Ryan Lochte his longest sponsor and the rest of his lineup within days.
Speedo · Ralph Lauren · USOC · Syneron-Candela · Airweave · 2016-08-22
What happened
At the 2016 Rio Olympics, 12-time Olympic medalist Ryan Lochte told reporters he and three teammates had been robbed at gunpoint on the way back from a party. Rio's police chief answered on 18 August: 'We can confirm that there was no robbery as they described, and they were not victims as they presented themselves.' The USOC apologized to Brazil the same day.
The brands moved within days. Speedo USA, his sponsor for more than a decade, ended the relationship on 22 August: 'We cannot condone behavior that is counter to the values this brand has long stood for.' It also donated the $50,000 portion of his fee to Save the Children. Ralph Lauren said it would not renew his contract, and Syneron-Candela and Airweave cut ties with him as well.
Lochte apologized — 'I made a mistake and I definitely learned from this' — and admitted he had left details out and over-exaggerated parts of the story. In September the USOC, together with the IOC and USA Swimming, suspended him for ten months, a ban that kept him out of the 2017 world championships in Budapest.
Why it happened
- The story collapsed in days: the police chief's announcement on 18 August made the robbery report false, and the sponsor exodus followed before the week was out.
- The association was long and deep: Speedo had sponsored him for more than a decade, so the cut carried the weight of a long relationship — and the others followed within days of it.
- The official finding came from the state, not the press: a police chief's announcement, not a tabloid report, is what the brands priced their decisions on.
The lesson
One exaggeration in front of a camera can reprice a decade of sponsorship within days: the brands read the police announcement and moved before the apology arrived.
Aftermath
Lochte apologized and admitted he had over-exaggerated parts of the story. In September 2016 the USOC, together with the IOC and USA Swimming, suspended him for ten months, a ban that ruled him out of the 2017 world championships in Budapest. Speedo never resumed the relationship.
Sources
- Rio police call swimmers' robbery story a fabrication; USOC apologizes — LA Times, 18 August 2016
- Ryan Lochte: Speedo ends sponsorship after Rio robbery claim — BBC News, 22 August 2016
- Speedo USA drops sponsorship of Ryan Lochte amid Rio scandal — ABC News, 22 August 2016
- Ryan Lochte suspended 10 months, barred from world championships — USA Today, 8 September 2016
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