Ryan Lochte Injured by Overly-Energetic Fan
Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte was injured when an overzealous fan spotted him, ran, and leaped into his arms. Lochte managed to catch the young woman but fell and blew out his knee.
Lochte, 29, was in Florida on Sunday when teenager saw him and began running at him. He managed to catch the girl as she leapt into his arms, but the force of the catch sent them both toppling. The teenager was unhurt but Lochte blew out his left knee. Now Lochte will have to focus on recovery and healing instead of training.
"As a result of a freak injury caused by an unexpected fan encounter, Ryan has suffered a torn MCL and an ACL sprain and will be taking a break from training and competition," his publicist said in a statement. "His medical team expects him to make a full and speedy recovery and Ryan thanks everyone for their well wishes."
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The Olympic star became famous for his good looks and competitive swimming against teammate Michael Phelps. The two competed to see who could bring home the most medals at the last Olympics but Phelps edged Lochte out with his numerous wins. The Phelps-Lochte battle for medals made the Olympics even more popular, and the swimming competitions must-see TV.
"For the most part I'm pretty satisfied," Lochte told the press after the Olympics were over. "Yeah, I wanted to get all gold in my events, but you know it didn't happen. I'm going to have to live with that and move on and learn from it, and try not to make the same mistakes in the next four years."
It's unclear just how this latest injury will affect his training schedule and what setbacks he may endure before starting training again. Fans will certainly be watching Lochte's progress and cheering him on from the sidelines.
