*Hours after Speedo announced it was ending its sponsorship of Ryan Lochte, Ralph Lauren and the parent company of Gentle Hair Removal issued statements Monday saying they were also severing ties with the Olympic swimmer in the wake of his lying scandal.
“Ralph Lauren continues to proudly sponsor the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Team and the values that its athletes embody,” the statement read. “Ralph Lauren’s endorsement agreement with Ryan Lochte was specifically in support of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games and the company will not be renewing his contract.”
Then, Syneron-Candela, the parent company of Gentle Hair Removal, announced: “Syneron-Candela will be ending its partnership with Ryan Lochte. We hold our employees to high standards, and we expect the same of our business partners. We wish Ryan well on his future endeavors and thank him for the time he spent supporting our brand.”
Lochte’s lone remaining sponsor, mattress company Airweave, appears to be standing by the athlete.
Its CEO Motokuni Takaoka said last week in a statement that Lochte “will remain a US ambassador for Airweave as long as our partnership agreement remains effective.”
Lochte, who admitted he was drunk in the wee hours of Aug. 14, destroyed a sign at a Rio gas station. He and the swimmers were then held by security guards with guns at the gas station and released after they paid a fee. Lochte later said in an interview with NBC how the swimmers were robbed at gunpoint, an account which he later called an “exaggeration.”
When asked by NBC’s Matt Lauer if his original version of the story could cost him his endorsements, Lochte answered it could.
“And that’s something I’m going to have to live with,” Lochte said.
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