Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) and Speedo have dropped their sponsorships of Ryan Lochte following the swimmer’s incident in Brazil.
The swimmer — who won one Gold medal in the Rio Olympics for men’s 4x200m freestyle relay — is no longer sponsored by the swimsuit company, Ralph Lauren and laser hair removal company Gentle Hair Removal.
Lochte claimed that he and three other swimmers were robbed at gunpoint in the Brazil capital by men with badges. They allegedly pulled their taxi over, pointed a gun at them and demanded money.
The swimmer returned to the U.S., but the other three swimmers were detained and they came clean regarding the incident. The four of them vandalized a bathroom, and they were later stopped by police that detained them and demanded they pay for their actions.
The athletes paid up, but Lochte’s misleading statement lost him lucrative deals with top sporting and apparel companies. Speedo said the company made the decision because they cannot condone the behavior of the American athlete, despite enjoying a profitable relationship with him for over a decade.
Syneron-Candela — the parent company of Gentle Hair Removal — said it holds its clients to the same high standards it holds its employees, and they had to let him go. They wish him success in the future and hope he learned his lesson.
Ralph Lauren said it would not renew its contract with Lochte.
Another dark element of the Olympics is the Twitter hate that many athletes received from social media trolls.
RL stock dipped 0.8% Monday.
