Should you date Ryan Lochte?

The Story

Remember Ryan Lochte? How can you not?! He is an 11-time Olympic Medalist, had his own show on E! and now calls Charlotte home. More importantly, he’s single.

The Facts

• The basics: Born Ryan Steven Lochte, August 3rd 1984 in Rochester, New York, swam for the University of Florida.
• The medals:
  • 5 Gold – 1 at Athens 2004, 2 at Beijing 2008, 2 at London 2012
  • 3 Silver – 1 at Athens 2004, 2 at London 2012
  • 3 Bronze – 2 at Beijing 2008, 1 at London 2012
• Ranked No. 2 in the world last year in the 200-meter individual medley.
• Current world-record holder in both the 200-meter and 400-meter individual medley.
• Had his own show on E! called “What Would Ryan Lochte Do?” which began airing in April of 2013 and cancelled five weeks later.
• Currently training for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil with SwimMAC Carolina under the coaching of David Marsh in Charlotte.
• He’s single and very ready for mingle.

• Best friends with Cullen Jones ever since they met almost 10 years ago at the Pan Pacific Championships (they initially bonded over their mutual love for Lil’ Wayne).
• Ryan was featured in the 2012 People’s issue of “Sexiest Man Alive” (duh.)
• Reportedly, also in 2012, Lochte turned down an opportunity to be on ABC’s “The Bachelor.”
• Some of his favorite things – Movie: “Belly” w/ DMX and Instagrammers: Ludacris (@ludacris) and Kevin Hart (@kevinhart4real).
• Remaining races:
  • FINA World Championships: July 24 – August 9 in Russia
  • 2016 Olympic Trials: June 26 – July 3 in Omaha Nebraska (this race is his ticket to Rio)
  • 2016 Summer Olympics: August 5th – August 21st

Quotes

“My life is boring during the week. I just eat, sleep and swim.” – Ryan Lochte.

“That fun goofy person that gets me through practices. He’s great to just hang out and go to dinner with, and just talk about whatever with. [Ryan] is possibly the most driven person I’ve ever seen. When he sets his mind to something, it’s unreal. And that’s inside or outside the pool. When he moved to Charlotte, he moved into his place in about an hour and a half. He was so focused to get in and get everything all set up. I’m like, ‘You can do this tomorrow!’ He’s like, ‘NO! Right now.’” – Cullen Jones, 31, Olympic Gold Medalist.

“He enjoys the fact that women think he looks good, and I know he enjoys the opposite sex, for sure. I would prefer he find one girl and rent a lot more Netflix movies. So that’s a challenge to the ladies out there in Charlotte.” – David Marsh, Lochte’s coach at SwimMAC.

“For his training, Gainesville was fantastic, but the lifestyle in Gainesville, I wouldn’t want for anybody. It’s a college life, and you have no responsibilities. I want him to have a normal, adult lifestyle, and I think that’s what North Carolina has given him. He doesn’t hang around with young college kids. He actually is held accountable for his actions. Nobody says, ‘You have to do this,’ and, ‘You have to do that.’ He really is on his own, and he’s doing a better job at making his own decisions.” – Ryan’s mother, Ike Lochte of Daytona Beach, FL.

C5’s Take

America loves Ryan and I do too. Yeah, he came off as a little stupid on his reality TV show but what did you expect of a reality TV show? What impresses me the most is that he has been in the public eye for his swimming and his good looks but has managed to keep his reputation in tact. If the worst thing he has done is sound silly in an interview, that sounds fine to me. With athletes all over the news in trouble for more serious issues, sounding like a surfer boy is the least of his troubles. Thanks for loving Charlotte Ryan, we love you right back.

Photos: Jeff Siner & John D Simmons / Charlotte Observer

This story was originally published March 16, 2015 at 1:12 AM with the headline "Should you date Ryan Lochte?."