Ryan Lochte Entering Rehab For Alcohol Addiction

Photo Courtesy: Becca Wyant

Four-time Olympian Ryan Lochte is seeking treatment for alcohol addiction and will enter a rehab program “immediately” per Yahoo! Sports.

“Ryan has been battling from alcohol addiction for many years and unfortunately, it has become a destructive pattern for him,” Lochte’s lawyer Jeff Ostrow told TMZ Sports.

“He has acknowledged that he needs professional assistance to overcome his problem and will be getting help immediately.”

The statement continues,

“Ryan knows that conquering this disease now is a must for him to avoid making future poor decisions, to be the best husband and father he can be, and if he wants to achieve his goal to return to dominance in the pool in his fifth Olympics in Tokyo in 2020.”

TMZ Sports first reported Lochte tried to kick in his hotel room door at 3 a.m Thursday morning (PT) after a night of partying in Southern California. Police were called, but no arrests were made as Lochte was able to smooth over the incident with the hotel staff.

In a non-alcohol related incident, Lochte flew home after the hotel disturbance and rear-ended a car with his Porsche in Gainesville, Florida, while driving from the airport. Lochte was cited for careless driving, while the driver of the car he hit was transported to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. “There’s no mention of alcohol in the police report,” TMZ reported. The crash reportedly occurred around 9:45 p.m. ET

According to a Gainesville Police Department report obtained by PEOPLE, Lochte was driving his Porsche in Alachua County around 9:45 p.m. when the male driver of a car in front of him slammed on his brakes. Realizing he was going to hit the car, Lochte attempted to brake and swerved his car to avoid the collision, but hit the right fender, according to the report — which states that alcohol use was not suspected.

Ostrow, told PEOPLE that, “It was the tiniest of accidents and had nothing to do with his decision to seek treatment. It’s embarrassing that the outlets would even consider reporting on it.”

Ryan Lochte was involved in the now-infamous Rio gas station scandal that resulted in him being handed a 10-month suspension after the 2016 Olympics.

Lochte was again suspended in 2018 after he posted a picture of himself on social media getting an IV infusion without a Therapeutic Use Exemption. Lochte is eligible to compete again July 2019.

TMZ and Yahoo! contributed to this report.

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31 Comments

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Mich Bee

5 years ago

Proud of you. Soldier on??.
When you get to the other side you will never have felt better about yourself, the world and your place in it in your entire life.

Kim Hacker Tomkinson

5 years ago

Katie Tomkinson

Jason Aldrich

5 years ago

Jordan Aldrich

Jason Aldrich

5 years ago

Good luck Ryan…

Robert Palmese

5 years ago

GOAT

Emily Betham

5 years ago

Lewis McColl

5 years ago

Reply to Emily Betham

Poor guy

Tracy A Bodenheimer

5 years ago

Emily Daniels

Valencia Wilson

5 years ago

????

Erin Swensen

5 years ago

Kendra Lair

5 years ago

Reply to Erin Swensen

Wow poor dude. Tbt to my obsession

Erin Swensen

5 years ago

Reply to Erin Swensen

Kendra Lair haha exactly why I tagged you

Kelley Ahl-Kosin

5 years ago

Go get it Ryan! You got this! Come back even stronger.

Jeannette Cn

5 years ago

Eduardo Lopez Diaz dont memes

Eduardo Lopez Diaz

5 years ago

Reply to Jeannette Cn

Se pasa la verdad

Francisca Alencar

5 years ago

What a karma!

Kristina Wade

5 years ago

Sarah Swann ?

Linda Hyslop

5 years ago

Terrible role model

Holly Dyer Glover

5 years ago

Haven’t drank in over 3 years. Now Im way fitter and faster! He will make an amazing comeback after getting alcohol out of his system

Scott R Moore

5 years ago

I have wondered if this was an issue for him. I am glad he is seeking help.

Suzie Thompson

5 years ago

Good for him. At least he already knows how to work hard. It’s a process not a race. It’s a distance thing.
Remember hard does not mean impossible. Luck to you Ryan.