Lochte’s reality show is getting a lot of ink, and at the Orlando Grand Prix he spoke very candidly about the impact the production is having on his training. It was more of a conversation Lochte would have with swimmers, coaches and the community rather than a soundbite on the red carpet in Hollywood. Swim fans may be critical of anything that pulls the 11-time Olympic medalist away from training for 8 weeks, but consider that this guy’s been logging thousands of miles in the pool since well before the 2004 Olympic Games. A break might do him good, even though filming the show isn’t a break. As Lochte states, he’s getting in four or more pool practices a week and heavy dryland training.
Lochte’s Orlando Grand Prix results as reported by SwimSwam last night:
Ryan Lochte came out on top for the first time in Orlando, finishing first in the men’s 200m IM. World Record Holder Lochte had a tough battle with Tyler Clary but was able to get the better of him during the last 100 finishing in 2:01.32 to Clary’s 2:02.91. Lochte’s Daytona Beach teammate Conor Dwyer finished third in 2:03.39.
Clary and Lochte faced off again later in the evening in the 200m backstroke. 2012 Olympic champion Tyler Clary defeated a close field to take the win in 1:57.85. Yannick Lebherz finished behind him in 1:59.31 followed by up-and-comer Ryan Murphy in 1:59.92. Lochte, not particularly focusing on the 200m backstroke during the grand prix meets this year finished far back in fifth with a time of 2:01.32.
Maybe too many “Ryan Lochte” Pink Hot Dogs!
http://xfinity.comcast.net/articles/entertainment-eonline/20130209/b386670/
OK, Ry. Can we get a pinkie swear on that?
Personal opinion – it’s so easy for people to automatically misinterpret the fact that Ryan isn’t always winning to mean that he’s losing steam or he isn’t ‘as good as he once was.’ Sure he’s got distractions with the show and whatever else he has going on in his personal life, but let’s not forget that he cleaned up at Worlds. I think it’s very obvious that even though winning is nice, that is not his main intention with these Grand Prix meets…
It’s great to say that he’s experimenting and trying new things, but when he’s not doing everything else he’s supposed to do correctly, it is a complete waste of time. Four practices out of nine per week? What exactly is he doing the rest of the time? Goofing around for the cameras…finding new girls to take home? I guess that is what the show will be about.
When is Ryan going to grow up and take the time to think about things before actually involving himself? Does he not see how hard everyone around him is working to get to where he is/was? Does he realize that people who are supposed to be helping “promote” him are filling their pockets while his career/reputation/future earnings potential hangs in the balance? When these people are done with him, they’ll move on. What does he think he’s going to do if all ends up lost?
I’m a HUGE long time fan of Ryan’s and was hoping that he was finally getting his stuff together, but it’s clear that he isn’t ready for that yet. If not now, when? Yes, you are only young once…but you are only young once.
Can someone tell me the last time Lochte actually swam well in season? He’s always been slow in season. He’s not Phelps folks. Phelps was a very good in season swimmer, but Lochte will be ready this summer and we won’t worry about Clary giving him a race in the 200IM. The 200 Back maybe, but it will be Lochte by at least 2 seconds in the 200IM and I think he’ll win the 100 Fly as well.
Fame is fleeeing in swimming, people just do swimming because they like it not much money for most people.
He can do what he wants, he’s a grown-ass man. I’m frankly surprised he’s lasted this long and he’s gonna need to mix up like this if he wants to last until Rio at age 31.dont forget he’s almost a year older than Phelps and still winning medals on the world stage.
He may be grown, but it’s hard not to judge someone’s actions when they’re always putting themselves on the public stage and declaring their grand aspirations. Ryan wants us to take an interest in his life and what he is doing…he wants to be just like the other pro athletes we see on tv. If that is the case, he’s got to expect fans will have objective opinions outside of the realm of his physical attractiveness. He’ll be *32* when Rio comes around (just turning), and the longer he stays out of the pool, the harder it will be on his body to get back in. It’s not always mind over matter as he may think.
Sure, the guy’s been “on the grind” (as he says) for quite a while leading up to the Olympics, and probably needs a *quality* break for mental and physical self-care…BUT, this show doesn’t seem to be that at all, given its demands. It’s also hard not to be skeptical about the whole thing given the characters at work behind the scenes of this show and what we know of them from their involvement in Ryan’s career in recent months and years. I believe my concerns here are valid, but only time will tell.
That said, I still forward my unending love and support for Ryan through the remainder of his career…no matter what happens.
I think he knows exactly what he’s doing; he’s not as dumb as they’re trying to make him out to be. He’s probably like….. somebody like Jessica Simpson, laughing all the way to the bank. His choice, not ours. I think his current swimming is only part of his game plan for the long haul, he’s clearly shifted.
Personally, it’s not hard for me not to judge him, but then it may be that I’m not that invested in his personal life (or the personal life of any pro athletes, except maybe for a couple). I probably won’t watch the reality show unless it’s mostly about swimming, but I think I heard it’s on E channel, so that seems unlikely. I think a reality show about a whole team or training group would be more interesting to me, but ESPN probably wouldn’t be that interested.
Jessica Simpson has a multitude of apparent and marketable talents. Her accessory and fragrance line alone is quality and has a broad appeal. Being a “ditz” isn’t the same as making a reputation of acting childish in every area of your life and consistently making poor career decisions.
I’m not totally sure how I got emotionally invested in him. Other than he seems like he could be my brother.
Aha! Interesting. Well being a guy, I doubt his fragrance or clothing line will beat Jessica Simpson’s, but I think he’ll do fine. As long as he finds the right woman for the long haul. If you think of him as a brother figure, you don’t want him to end up like, say, a Bruce Jenner.
I mean, the guy has put in the hours and dedication to become one of the most decorated Olympians in history, but I’m concerned about what will happen in the future.
So then write him a fan letter, tell him he reminds you of your brother, and, as a proxy sibling, that you don’t want him to crash and burn too early in the entertainment biz and end up in middle age, dependent on a reality tv maven for his unnecessary plastic surgeries.
Good luck though, my own real siblings don’t even listen to me (nor I to them).
If I were him I’d probably be thinking that this show might lead to other things that could cost him a medal or two in Rio, but he’ll probably still win a few, have fun and be even more of a household name by then.
A few is too much..
No more 400IM for him.
He got a chance on 200IM, 200 Back.. and that´s it.. No 200 free, 100 fly..
Relay US will have a tought time without Phelps, that on all 3 relays. but the Medley are on a better level so it will be easier to get gold, but the 4×100 free will have a very tough time, and the french will come Very Strong on the 4×200..
A few? Realistically, I’m seeing one medal for the 200 IM if he’s lucky and maybe one for a relay. And the individual (if he gets one) isn’t going to be gold. I just hope he surprises me.
The show and his lifestyle in general could lead to things that might cost him future successes and opportunities. Yeah, he obviously doesn’t listen to his own family (no one does), so maybe he will listen to strangers?
Sorry, Ryan. Still love you…but you are freaking people out.
Taking a break over 3 years out with the base he has could serve him well. I’d be more worried about him burning out and breaking down then getting out of shape. He is still staying fit and in the pool which is more than many did who took breaks from swimming.
Ryan and Coach Troy will do what it takes going into Rio. They have never stressed about in season meets and they aren’t going to do it now. I all but guarantee he will walk away with multiple medals from worlds this summer.
200 Back and 200IM I Would bet.
Plus the 3 relays… even thinking if he does not quality on the 100 individual of being top 6 on 100 free he should not go on 4×100 and 4×100 medley.. But 4×100 US will need someone to step on Phelps spot.. Australia will probably not repeat their mistakes and France and Russia will fight hard also..
Ever heard of Tom shields? Or possibly Conger/Murphy.
In four years, Conger, Murphy, and Shields will more than likely
be finaling. Not to mention the current 16-17 year olds (Gonray,
Carter, Bentz)
Hey, maybe.
Dialing it back physically for a couple months could actually help in the medium-long run and let the body heal up from chronic overuse a bit. I’m actually kind of reminded of Jenny Thompson shoehorning training around medical residency the first year of her comeback- not as much pool time, but still very good results come the important meets. Granted JT was more of a sprinter who could move up to a 200 free when needed than a middle distance person, but I think Lochte will still be very competitive come this summer.
Give the guy a break! There are other aspects to life than just swimming to explore! Some down time after the Olympics is not such a bad thing… It will help him be rejuvenated when the time comes to buckle down…The first year of the quadrenium is not that important!
Yeah, sprinters seem to have an easier time hanging on as they get older.
But mental stress from doing the show, training somewhat, meets, appearances, etc., doesn’t seem very rejuvenating. The stuff that’s gone on outside of the pool leading up to the Olympics and through today would be enough to make a normal person want to crawl into a hole. Mental stress can be worse than physical stress.
It’s not so what the “what” in this equation that concerns me as the “who” (as in who is involved) and the “how” (as in how they’re going about it).
I think this show may actually be good for Ryan in the long run. He needs a mental break. I think in London his problem was that even though he was in a perfect physical shape, he was not 100% mentally. He allowed Clary and Phelps to get in his head for the 200back-200IM double.
If he wants to keep his momentum going into this Olympic cycle, Lochte needs to make sure that he is not vulnerable mentally. I think this reality show will allow him to puts the regrets of last year to rest. You cannot continue swimming into your 30s if you are constantly thinking “what else I could be doing?”, “what I am missing outside the pool?”. If anything it seems that he is more resolved than ever to get back into a normal training routine because he realized that Hollywood is not exactly his thing and he loves training and being at optimal shape.
All that and we should not read too much into his mid-season shape (wasn’t that great in other years either). He was not that impressive at Winter Nationals but then cleaned up at the SC Worlds. Now, if the results at the LC Worlds are comparable to those in the Orlando Grand Prix, a red light probably should go off.
I don’t see people making these sorts of comments when Natalie Coughlin takes a year off or a swimmer takes a six-month break from the sport. This is the first serious break Ryan has taken since he started ascending in the sport as a teenager. Besides, we all saw what he did in Istanbul on something like six weeks of training. There are people in this sport who can switch it on when they need to, and Ryan is one of those people. It’s a little too early to make comments about how the sky is falling.
Does anybody else see the parallel to Phelps? I mean, isn’t this almost exactly what happened to him after Beijing? Stepped back a little bit, took some time away to be “disctracted” (aka, enjoy his celebrity before he’s too old to), rethink his event lineups, want to do more sprints…I mean, his London results weren’t perfect, but they were pretty darn good. I bet he wouldn’t take back the way the last 4 years went.
Except his turns and finish were horrible in the 200 fly. We all know he wants that one back. I don’t feel sorry for him. He doesn’t have to deal with the Chinese Government as I do.
Give the guy a break. We know now he’s short sighted, he couldn’t judge those walls well. What’s your excuse for bronze in 200 free?
But Sung did not get bronze on 200 free.. your argument is invalid!
Liliana, your ladyboner for Phelps is showing again. Put it away before you scare the kids.
I think Ryan’s biggest threat to IM supremacy is swimming in his own pool. Conor Dwyer is a backstroke away from seriously challenging him in the IMs. I think his trajectory is set to have a really big Rio Olympics.
Maybe Kosuke hagino Josh??
I think had we seen Dwyer swim the 400 IM at Trials, he would have been able to go 4:10 and maybe even a 4:09. His time at Guadalajara converted to a 4:13 low, and he was undoubtedly a much better swimmer by the time Trials came around.
Since the 400 free and 400 IM are on separate days this year, he can take a shot at both. He’s only 24 years old now and will only be 27 at Rio. Fortunately, the stroke he has to improve is the one that the Gator team seems to do best at.
I was talking more in a domestic sense, Rafael, but I do think Dwyer can challenge on the World stage if he can improve his backstroke and commit to the 400 IM heading towards Rio. Hagino will be really, really good in about two years after a little more physical maturation.
Josh, won´t Lotche drop the 400 IM also?
Does Dwyer have the raw speed needed for the 200IM?
Did you see the 1500? I was crying cause the government had already robbed half my gold.
That was six weeks not too many months after the Olympics. That’s not the same as any six weeks, because he was still somewhat in shape. And it was short course.
I guess one advantage Lochte has is that enough Olympians have hung on or come back in their late 20′s and early 30′s by now that he can learn from their successes and failures. Coughlin feels that she overtrained, especially given her age, in the last year prior to ’12 Trials, trying to compensate for taking a lot of time off, but ended up overcompensating. Lochte doesn’t sound as burned out as Phelps, but he can talk to Phelps and see what worked/didn’t work for him, adjusting for being 5 years older in ’16 than Phelps was in ’12. I think he will also realize pretty quickly that reality television is not restful or a “break” but rather stressful and exhausting, so hopefully he can adjust accordingly.
Lotche will also have to keep down his Phelpsian attitude, he will be a “old” guy on a field loaded with guys hitting their prime.. He will have to focus on less events if he wants to have any chance at OG