Controversial comeback: how swimmer Lochte found a loophole in the rules and won the U.S. Championship right after being disqualified

On July 24, at the height of the World Aquatics Championships, one important swimming event occurred. American swimmer Ryan Lochte served a suspension for anti-doping rule violations and received permission to return to the sport.

Lochte has been known to sports enthusiasts since 2004, when he won his first of six Olympic gold medals. For 12 years, he was a real swimming star thanks to his versatility and endurance - he has many disciplines in his arsenal, from 100 meters on the back to 400 meters with integrated swimming. Thanks to this, Lochte became the second swimmer in the world in the number of awards at the world championships, second only to Phelps.

However, after the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Lochte's career went downhill. Even in Brazil, an American got into an ugly story when he told the media that, along with other swimmers, the US team was the victim of a robbery. Later it turned out that there was no crime, but in fact Lochte, being in a state of intoxication, defeated a gas station with friends and then tried to distract attention in this way. The US Swimming Federation suspended him for ten months.

Lochte returned to the sport in the spring of 2018, but then again found himself in the center of the scandal. On May 24, he posted a photograph showing how he was doing an intravenous infusion. Anti-doping rules strictly regulate this method of introducing substances into the body, even if they are completely legal and are not doping. Athletes are prohibited from pouring more than 100 ml into themselves for 12 hours, unless they have special permission from the doctor.

Lochte immediately deleted the photo, but managed to notice it at the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA). An investigation was launched, which the athlete tried to promote as much as possible. Although it turned out that Lochte only took vitamins (the publication itself was their advertisement), he was rather severely punished. The 10-time world champion received a 14-month suspension, starting from the moment the photograph was published. Thus, Lochte lost the opportunity to speak at international competitions in 2018 and 2019, but at the same time promised to return to his fifth Olympics.

The day after the end of the disqualification, Lochte shared his plans for the resumption of his sports career. He took part in the US Championship, which started almost immediately after the World Cup. For fans and specialists, this was a surprise in some way. After a long disqualification, many athletes still need extra time to start participating in competitions. This is primarily due to the set of forms, as during the disqualification, cooperation with coaches is prohibited.

Another reason why Lochte’s return seemed too fast is bureaucratic. To participate in the US Championship, athletes must comply with the standards within a certain period. Access was only possible after June 1, 2018. Lochte was already formally disqualified.

However, in the USADA decision on Lochta, there was a loophole that allowed him to immediately resume his career without too much trouble. His removal did not imply cancellation of the results shown after May 24. In June last year, while the investigation was underway against Lochte, he continued to calmly participate in small competitions and showed them the results necessary for applying for the US championship. The de facto disqualification lasted only 12 months instead of the announced 14 USADA.

During the suspension, Lochte used his results to show up at three distances at the US Championship, held in Palo Alto. At the same time, he received special permission from the organizers to compete in a distance of 200 meters freestyle.

At first, the 35-year-old Lochte did not perform very well - he could not make it to the finals either on the 100-meter butterfly, on 100 meters on his back, or in the crawl for 200 meters. Only on the last day, the owner of 12 Olympic medals won the US championship in his crown discipline - 200 meters with integrated swimming. Lochte swam the distance in 1: 57.76 - with that time he would have made his way to the finals of the recent World Cup, but would have taken last place in it.

It was important for Lochte to speak immediately after disqualification and show a decent result in order to receive sponsorship. In the United States, it relies on team members whose results are among the top six in each individual discipline. The time shown by Lochte in Palo Alto is the fourth in the country and should provide the swimmer with financial support.