UGA swimmer Gunnar Bentz receives punishment from Rio incident
The United States Olympic Committee and USA Swimming announced a punishment for UGA swimmer Gunnar Bentz on Thursday.
Bentz, along with fellow swimmers Jack Conger and James Feigen, has been suspended from domestic and international USA Swimming national competition for four months.
“I fully accept the punishment for my involvement in this matter. I have learned a valuable life lesson. I am anxious to move on, and I look forward to a great season with my Georgia teammates,” Bentz later tweeted.
The three swimmers will receive no monthly stipend from USA Swimming or the USOC, will have no access to USOC facilities, will not be able to join Team USA for its White House visit and cannot attend the squad’s annual “Golden Goggles” event in 2016.
The UGA swimmer will also have to perform 10 hours of community service for violating a USA Swimming Olympic curfew under the age of 21.
Following a gas station incident in Rio, Bentz sent out a lengthy statement detailing the happenings of the night apologizing for his role.
Ryan Lochte, a Florida grad, faced the strictest punishment of the four swimmers involved. He will face a 10-month suspension in a addition to the above punishments.
The sanctions are set to begin immediately.
You can view the details of the punishments below:
Here are the official punishments for Lochte & the three other swimmers, per USOC/USA Swimming: pic.twitter.com/wXplaoUA2S
— Nicole Auerbach (@NicoleAuerbach) September 8, 2016