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- An attorney for Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte said Friday that he will seek treatment for alcohol addiction.
- The decision follows a Thursday morning incident in which Lochte, 34, tried to kick down a hotel room door, according to TMZ 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.
Olympic gold medalist Ryan Lochte is said to be seeking treatment after a yearslong battle with alcohol addiction, his lawyer said Friday.
Attorney Jeff Ostrow told the entertainment publication TMZ that the champion swimmer decided to seek treatment after causing an incident at a Newport Beach, California, hotel on Thursday.
The outlet reports that Lochte drunkenly tried to kick in the door to his hotel room around 3 a.m., which prompted security to call the police.
The matter was settled without Lochte being arrested. But the incident was allegedly a wake-up call to the married father-of-one.
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“Ryan has been battling from alcohol addiction for many years and unfortunately it has become a destructive pattern for him,” Ostrow told TMZ.
He added: “He has acknowledged that he needs professional assistance to overcome his problem and will be getting help immediately.
“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 5th Olympics in Tokyo in 2020.”
Lochte’s drinking got him into trouble during the last Olympic Games, in Rio, in 2016. Lochte claimed he and some friends were robbed at gunpoint after a night out. It was later revealed, that the group voluntarily handed the money over to settle a dispute after they vandalized a gas station bathroom on their way home. Lochte admitted to NBC News at the time that he was drunk and had “over-exaggerated” the story.
Business Insider reached out to Lochte for comment, but did not immediately receive a response Friday afternoon.
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