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I voted no. Lochte got caught up in the story. He most likely never thought it would go that far.. he was held at the gas station and a gun pointed at him.. kind of unnerving in a foreign country to say the least. Lochte probably did think it was a hold up. There was a language barrier and was also under the influence.
Lochte for all his hard work should not be penalized over this . I don't believe he intended to lie. He just saw it differently. His perception of the incident was partially true.
Thank you. I agree with every word, especially the bold.
A four-year ban would knock Lochte, 32, out of the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.
U.S. Olympic athletes should be held to a higher standard, and in many ways they are. The constant drug testing they undergo, for instance, is second to none.
Some argue that the 12-time Olympic medalist should be banned for life from USA swimming.
THAT IS SO HARSH. I want to see him competing again at age of 36. What a dream for all competitive swimmers!!!! Let him compete.
He made an immature mistake, he did not handle the situation well especially under pressure. Enough is enough.
Did you watch his interview? He dedicated his entire life to the sports he loves. Do you even know what it takes to be a world class swimmer? Why do athletes must be the moral leaders? He learned his lesson already. He said " I am embarrassed." He said, "I am sorry" what else do people want him to do? Some even said he should be banned, they even want to end his career. For what? for making a human mistake? For lying?
He said, he would better himself, making sure that this would never happen again. He deserves to go to Tokyo, He serves to stay in the sports. He is the best world class swimmer. Swimming is where he belongs, nothing can change that.
Can we PLEASE give people a second chance? It is not like he did something that horrible. Look how many people defend Hillary Clinton, it is even possible that she becomes our first female president, why can't we give him a chance? Gee, where is the fairness in this?
Well..life is full of 2nd acts....now he can get a real job..contribute to society..write a book...prove to people that one drunken act does not make a life, but Speedo is well within their rights---and there should be consequences for one's actions..Just his bad luck that his "story' became a political football.
Well..life is full of 2nd acts....now he can get a real job..contribute to society..write a book...prove to people that one drunken act does not make a life, but Speedo is well within their rights---and there should be consequences for one's actions..Just his bad luck that his "story' became a political football.
real job? professional competitive swimmers have real jobs. Thank you very much.
I've read enough of your blustering to know you're too much of a mouth breather to pay attention to details, update yourself on new facts as they emerge, or be balanced in your approach. You've made up your mind and that's that.
That's pretty funny considering you cited no references and i did. But do carry on with your insults if that's all you got.
real job? professional competitive swimmers have real jobs. Thank you very much.
Well...I don't think professional athletes contribute much to the world...it's a personal belief of mine...and I'm sure many disagree with me...still...the thrust of my post stands....He can come back from this..and it need not be as a swimmer.
There's NO in-between for some people, katygirl. They read a story once, decide they really hate the 'bad guy', and it's game on. People are too short-attention-spanned to keep up with a story, absorb important new details, and be willing to change their stance. I see it every freaking day here at this board AND in real life. It's shocking.
For example:
As details emerge we find out that they didn't vandalize the bathroom and that they were in fact held at gunpoint by off duty police officers who demanded money. DON'T CARE.
They were fined an exorbitant amount of money when the fine for public urination is only $510 in Rio. DON'T CARE.
They paid for the damage and then some for the sign. There was NO other damage. DON'T CARE.
Rio police are not being transparent and edited THREE MINUTES of the video that they made public. DON'T CARE.
A Rio judge says they technically WERE robbed of the amount of money that they were forced to give at gunpoint that exceeded the actual damages. DON'T CARE.
A Rio attorney says they can't be charged for filing a false police report because they never filed one in the first place. DON'T CARE.
Almost a dozen athletes from Australia got in trouble and were held for ten hours and fined $4000 each for entering the basketball arena without proper credentials. NOT IMPORTANT. NO COMMENT.
And despite making it clear that you can find fault in Lochte's actions AND the actions of Rio officials ... DON'T CARE.
My references were cited in a link three pages back, dude.
Fair enough, I missed that. Dude.
What I got out of that is that the witness, Deluz, pretty much backs-up the security guards side of the case. The weapons weren't drawn until the swimmers tried to leave after having been caught vandalizing the place. Lochte himself as admitted to, "greatly exaggerating the story", so not sure why you're defending him.
Here's the original story in Lochte's own words:
"We got pulled over, in the taxi, and these guys came out with a badge, a police badge, no lights, no nothing just a police badge and they pulled us over," Lochte said. "They pulled out their guns, they told the other swimmers to get down on the ground — they got down on the ground. I refused, I was like we didn't do anything wrong, so — I'm not getting down on the ground.
And then the guy pulled out his gun, he cocked it, put it to my forehead and he said, 'Get down,' and I put my hands up, I was like 'whatever.' He took our money, he took my wallet — he left my cell phone, he left my credentials."
That in NO WAY resembles what we're finding out actually happened! The fact that people are arguing over the nuances of how payment for the damages was extracted or whether that in itself was legal is just noise. This was a situation of their own making and I don't see how anyone can say otherwise.
So question for you. If they truly didn't understand the gas station incident and felt like they were robbed, then why did they fabricate the original story? I'm anxiously awaiting your response.
What I got out of that is that the witness, Deluz, pretty much backs-up the security guards side of the case. The weapons weren't drawn until the swimmers tried to leave after having been caught vandalizing the place. Lochte himself as admitted to, "greatly exaggerating the story", so not sure why you're defending him.
Here's the original story in Lochte's own words:
"We got pulled over, in the taxi, and these guys came out with a badge, a police badge, no lights, no nothing just a police badge and they pulled us over," Lochte said. "They pulled out their guns, they told the other swimmers to get down on the ground — they got down on the ground. I refused, I was like we didn't do anything wrong, so — I'm not getting down on the ground.
And then the guy pulled out his gun, he cocked it, put it to my forehead and he said, 'Get down,' and I put my hands up, I was like 'whatever.' He took our money, he took my wallet — he left my cell phone, he left my credentials."
That in NO WAY resembles what we're finding out actually happened! The fact that people are arguing over the nuances of how payment for the damages was extracted or whether that in itself was legal is just noise. This was a situation of their own making and I don't see how anyone can say otherwise.
So question for you. If they truly didn't understand the gas station incident and felt like they were robbed, then why did they fabricate the original story? I'm anxiously awaiting your response.
The lying was stupid. Everyone agrees with that. I think he got caught up in his original story to his mom, and liked all the attention. I still think the whole incident would have played out differently if the same happened in this country to foreign Olympic athletes. Speedo and Ralph Lauren have dropped him. He should probably get a suspension for a few meets, but his career should not be ended.
He didn't rob anyone, or rape anyone, or even drive drunk. He was drunk and broke a sign, and may or may not have done some damage to a door (though I don't trust the Rio authorities one bit).
There's NO in-between for some people, katygirl. They read a story once, decide they really hate the 'bad guy', and it's game on. People are too short-attention-spanned to keep up with a story, absorb important new details, and be willing to change their stance. I see it every freaking day here at this board AND in real life. It's shocking.
For example:
As details emerge we find out that they didn't vandalize the bathroom and that they were in fact held at gunpoint by off duty police officers who demanded money. DON'T CARE.
They were fined an exorbitant amount of money when the fine for public urination is only $510 in Rio. DON'T CARE.
They paid for the damage and then some for the sign. There was NO other damage. DON'T CARE.
Rio police are not being transparent and edited THREE MINUTES of the video that they made public. DON'T CARE.
A Rio judge says they technically WERE robbed of the amount of money that they were forced to give at gunpoint that exceeded the actual damages. DON'T CARE.
A Rio attorney says they can't be charged for filing a false police report because they never filed one in the first place. DON'T CARE.
Almost a dozen athletes from Australia got in trouble and were held for ten hours and fined $4000 each for entering the basketball arena without proper credentials. NOT IMPORTANT. NO COMMENT.
And despite making it clear that you can find fault in Lochte's actions AND the actions of Rio officials ... DON'T CARE.
This is called a red herring argument, a pretty common logical fallacy.
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