Ryan Lochte Banned 14 Months After Sharing Photo Of IV Treatment

Ryan Lochte Banned 14 Months After Sharing Photo Of IV Treatment

U.S. swimming star and 12-time Olympic medalist Ryan Lochte has accepted a 14-month ban from competition for his use of a prohibited method.

Jul 23, 2018 by FloSwimming Staff
Ryan Lochte Banned 14 Months After Sharing Photo Of IV Treatment

U.S. swimming star and 12-time Olympic medalist Ryan Lochte has accepted a 14-month ban from competition for receiving an intravenous infusion without a therapeutic use exemption, USADA announced today.

On May 24, 2018, Lochte, 33, posted an now-deleted image on Instagram depicting himself receiving an IV, using the hashtag "#ivdrip." A subsequent investigation by USADA, with which Lochte fully cooperated, revealed that Lochte received an IV of permitted substances, which he says were B12 and other vitamins, at an infusion clinic in a volume greater than 100 mL in a 12-hour period. 

Intravenous infusions or injections in a volume greater than 100 mL within a 12-hour period are prohibited at all times—except for those legitimately received in the course of hospital treatment, surgical procedures, or clinical diagnostic investigations.

Lochte’s 14-month period of ineligibility began on May 24, 2018, the date he received the prohibited intravenous infusion.

The six-time Olympic gold medalist previously received a 10-month ban from competition for his behavior during a drunken gas station encounter at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro.

— A USADA press release contributed to this report