Six-time Olympic gold medal winning swimmer Ryan Lochte will join the cast of Season 30 of the television show Worst Cooks in America, where he will compete for a $25,000 prize for charity. That’s less than the $50,000 that has historically been awarded for celebrity seasons.
Lochte is one of 10 contestants on season 30 and the only professional athlete on the season.
The show, which has had about a dozen celebrity seasons in 30 seasons, takes contestants who are really bad in the kitchen and puts them through a ‘culinary boot camp’ led by professional chefs Tiffany Derry and Jeff Mauro. The mentors give the contestants training in basic cooking techniques throughout the season.
Contestants are eliminated throughout the season until they get down to three final contestants, who each cook a three-course restaurant-quality meal for the judges, with the best meal being chosen as the winner.
The show airs on the food network, with the premier scheduled for Sunday, January 4, 2026.
This has been a whirlwind week of news for Lochte. He made headlines earlier in the week for announcing the release of his memoir and for putting three of his Olympic gold medals up for auction.
This is not Lochte’s first foray into reality television: he had his own reality show on E! called What Would Ryan Lochte Do during the height of his fame in 2013, and was eliminated in Week 8 of Dancing With the Stars during the 2016 season. He also appeared on Season 2 of Celebrity Big Brother in 2019, an episode of Celebrity Family Feud, and The Traitors on Peacock in 2023.
Season 30 Contestants
| Contestant | Age | Occupation |
| Amara La Negra | 35 | Love & Hip Hop: Miami star |
| Beverley Mitchell | 44 | Actress |
| CT Tamburello | 45 | The Challenge star |
| Downtown Julie Brown | 62 |
Former MTV VJ
|
| Lisa Barlow | 50 | The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star |
| Manila Luzon | 44 | RuPaul’s Drag Race star |
| Reza Farahan | 52 | Shahs of Sunset star |
| Romeo Miller | 36 |
Rapper and singer
|
| Ryan Lochte | 41 |
Former Olympic swimmer
|
| Val Chmerkovskiy | 39 | Dancing with the Stars dancer |
If I’m a cook at night I need to be a cook in the morning
Is there any date about how regular exposure to chlorine over many years impacts a person’s senses of taste and smell? I feel like a swimmer might have a disadvantage in a competition like this. Is it possible that we all, unknowingly, have a dulled sense of taste dooming us to lives with less sophisticated palates?
“Ryan, it’s time to cook.”
Has he thought of maybe just getting a stable job?
What kind of job do you think Ryan lochte could do?
Coaching?
Season 30 of a show I’ve never heard of
Lochte selling 3 of his gold medals on Instagram the other day was heartbreaking. He seems to be in a bad spot financially. Hopefully he has the right support group around him now.
He has become an embarassment.
I don’t know. Some people love reality TV. I think there’s a group that could call this a W for Lochte.
But not swimming people. We’re far too sophisticated for that. Reality television is for the underclass.
forgot the /s there
I will never be too sophisticated for 90 Day Fiancé.
He already failed at reality TV
The alimony and child support must be a pretty penny for him to be poking his head out again