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Ryan Lochte apologized on Friday for his “behavior” surrounding an altercation at a gas station in Rio, admitting he should have been “more careful and candid” in how he described the events. But most Twitter users aren’t accepting the Olympic swimmer’s apology, pointing out that he never actually admits to lying about being robbed at gunpoint. See Twitter reactions below.
As Gossip Cop reported, Lochte issued an apology statement for his role in an incident at a Rio gas station last week, during which the attendant pulled a gun on him and three other Olympic swimmers after they vandalized the bathroom. However, Lochte later told the U.S. Olympic Committee and Brazilian authorities that the group was held up by men posing as police officers, one of whom supposedly pointed a gun at his head and stole his wallet. The athlete told slightly different variations of this same tale in subsequent television interviews, but his account of events was proven false when authorities uncovered security footage of what really happened.
As for Lochte’s apology, in which he never actually confesses to making up his story, one Twitter user wrote, “I love how @RyanLochte makes a non apology and still blames anyone but himself for lying. Lost all respect for this drama queen.” One person called the swimmer’s statement, “the classic ‘non-apology apology’ from man-child,” and another added, “Not really an apology. More of a rationalization.”
“So in this ‘apology’ @RyanLochte doesn’t admit to lying & still sticks to the lie. What a joke,” one person commented. Another user said, “What a lame apology!!! Admit you straight out lied! And then go cry to your mommy!” And one user offered, “Every time @ryanlochte opens his mouth he sounds like a bigger jerk.” Meanwhile, one person posted a photo of a golden retriever relieving itself, and added the caption, “My dog’s analysis of @RyanLochte’s apology letter.”
In his statement, Lochte said it was “traumatic to be out late with your friends in a foreign country with a language barrier.” Dismissing this notion, one user expressed, “Ryan Lochte complaining about being a tourist and language barriers CRY ME A RIVER.” Another person similarly said, “So it’s not horrifying to have drunk, entitled foreigners trash & misrepresent your city? @RyanLochte stop defending ur BS & just say sorry.”
Meanwhile, one person didn’t believe Lochte chose the right outlet to express remorse, tweeting, “What’s even more apprehensive about your actions is that you believe an apology through social media is sufficient.” And another person said, “Ryan Lochte’s statement about the ‘truth’ sounds like a kid explaining how the dog ate his homework and then pointed a gun at him.” These were just a few of Twitter’s many unforgiving reactions to the Olympian’s apology.
