Ryan Lochte already losing endorsements

Swimsuit and apparel manufacturer Speedo, the leading brand in the industry in America, has terminated its sponsorship of Ryan Lochte.

Speedo sent out a statement Monday morning announcing that it has parted ways with Lochte. The one-paragraph statement, in its entirety:

“Speedo USA today announces the decision to end its sponsorship of Ryan Lochte. As part of this decision, Speedo USA will donate a $50,000 portion of Lochte’s fee to Save The Children, a global charity partner of Speedo USA’s parent company, for children in Brazil. 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”
 

Losing Speedo as a sponsor is a significant blow for Ryan Lochte. (AP)

This was the first – but not the last – known business repercussion for Lochte after his involvement in the widely publicized incident in Rio de Janeiro the night after the swimming portion of the Olympic Games ended. CNBC reported that Ralph Lauren is not renewing its sponsorship contract with Lochte, and airweave mattresses announced it had cut ties with the swimmer Monday afternoon.

Lochte claimed he was robbed by a fake policeman who held a gun to his head, sparking an international firestorm, but later admitted to an “over-exaggeration” of events that occurred in the company of fellow American swimmers Gunnar Bentz, Jack Conger and Jimmy Feigen. Lochte and Feigen were charged with filing a false report with police; Bentz and Conger were detained for 24 hours as witnesses; and the U.S. Olympic Committee ultimately issued an apology for the affair, which overshadowed much of the second week of the Olympics.

Losing Speedo as a sponsor is a significant blow for Lochte. Swimming apparel manufacturers are a major element of the sponsorship money available to professional swimmers, who can otherwise struggle to find enough endorsement revenue to make swimming a full-time job.