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Ryan Lochte and three other U.S. swimmers were robbed by thieves who put a cocked gun to Lochte's head in Rio de Janeiro early Sunday morning, the U.S. swimmer 

Lochte and his friends were in a taxi, going to visit a Brazilian swimmer, when the robbers stopped them.

"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 told NBC. "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."

Lochte, who's known for his laid-back, nonchalant attitude, added:

Patrick Sandusky, a spokesman for the U.S. Olympic Committee, said in a statement that in addition to Lochte, three other swimmers were robbed: Gunnar Bentz, Jack Conger and Jimmy Feigen.

"Their taxi was stopped by individuals posing as armed police officers who demanded the athletes' money and other personal belongings. All four athletes are safe and cooperating with authorities," the statement said.

Rio's high crime rate has been a source of concern for athletes and tourists, and there have been a number of incidents. But with heavy security in and around the Olympic venues, reports of problems have been isolated so far.


The swimming competition in Rio ended on Saturday night. Lochte, 32, won one gold medal in Rio as a member of the 4x200 freestyle relay. That gave him 12 Olympic medals in his career, tying him for the most among swimmers all-time, aside from Michael Phelps.  Copyright 2019 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Sports

Greg Myre

Author

Lochte's taxi was stopped by robbers who put a cocked gun to his head. "I was like 'Whatever.' He took our money, he took my wallet," the swimmer told NBC. No one was hurt.

Ryan Lochte, 3 other U.S. swimmers robbed at gunpoint in Rio

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