Ryan Lochte just lost one of his biggest sponsors with Speedo pulling the plug on the swimmer in the wake of his embarrassing Rio bathroom debacle.
The mankini company just issued a statement saying, “While we have enjoyed a winning relationship with Ryan for over a decade and he has been an important member of the Speedo team, we cannot condone behavior that is counter to the values this brand has long stood for.”
“We appreciate his many achievements and hope he moves forward and learns from this experience.”
Speedo also says it will donate a $50,000 portion of Lochte’s fees to Save The Children — a charity which will use the money to benefit children in need in Brazil.
The official response regarding our sponsorship of Ryan Lochte. pic.twitter.com/0DdP2RyceD
— Speedo USA (@SpeedoUSA) August 22, 2016
Other companies ended their relationship with Lochte on Monday too. Syneron-Candela, owner of Gentle Laser Hair Removal and Airwave, a Japanese mattress company, both ended their endorsement agreements. Ralph Lauren also released a statement saying that their contract with Lochte was only for the Rio 2016 Olympics and would not be renewed.
All these contracts are estimated at a combined $1 million.
