Swimming star Lochte misses Olympic ticket

Swimming star Ryan Lochte could no longer hold back his tears after his Olympic dream came to an abrupt end. “Not having made it feels like I let everyone down,” said the six-time Olympic champion, who, as predicted, missed his fifth Summer Games participation. “My children were able to watch their dad swim again - that means everything to me.” Seventh place in the eliminations for the American Olympic team in the 200 meter individual medley was clearly not enough. The 36-year-old can look back on a total of twelve medals from four games. By qualifying for Tokyo, Lochte wanted to step away from the big stage with sporting headlines, because his reputation had suffered badly since the Olympics in Rio. First there was the fabricated robbery in Brazil, for which he was banned for ten months. This was followed by a ban because he had posted a picture of a vitamin infusion on a social network. A banned substance was not detected, but a 14-month compulsory break still followed. Participation again would have been all the more important to him. “I really wanted to be on that Olympic team,” Lochte said. The competition was “probably the most important swimming competition of my entire career” and it was hard to be disappointed. Winner Michael Andrew and record Olympic champion Michael Phelps provided consolation. Tears after the exit “It was an incredible feeling to be able to experience this moment with Ryan,” said 22-year-old Andrew. Lochte “handed over the baton” to him. “He said, you’re our man now, go out there and do your best. I always looked up to him. “So this is a very special moment for me that I will always remember,” said Andrew. That touched Lochte. “These words mean so much to me. Maybe even more than winning a gold medal,” he said with tears in his eyes. Lochte doesn't want to retire from swimming. “I want to continue swimming competitively, but I don’t know about qualifying for the Olympics,” he said after clearly missing out on qualifying. “I will be almost 40. That's a bit exaggerated." The Games in Paris will take place in summer 2024.

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Swimming star Lochte misses Olympic ticket

Now it's clear: swimming star Ryan Lochte has missed his fifth Olympic Games. After difficult years, the American wants to remain loyal to his sport despite the painful moment. He leaves the how open.

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