BY ADARIO STRANGE From Mashable

Now that the drama surrounding Ryan Lochte’s robbery claim in Brazil is drawing to a close, the Olympic swimmer is finally talking about the incident on camera.

In an interview with NBC’s Matt Lauer, Lochte tones down his version of the story while sticking to his claim that a gun was brandished.

In the brief clip, an excerpt of a longer interview airing Sunday, Lochte, who is at times teary-eyed, admits that he “over-exaggerated” what happened and blames the unfortunate series of events on his “immature behavior.”

The international mess over the incident has threatened to overshadow the spirit of the Olympic games by stoking early fears of violence against athletes.

And while Lochte initially stuck to the story that he and his fellow teammates were robbed at gunpoint, days later, as media scrutiny mounted and Brazilian police disputed his account, he finally came forward and made a statement on Instagram.

Whether this effort by Lochte to smooth things over by finally appearing in public will improve his status with USA Swimming or repair his reputation with sponsors remains to be seen. But coming out from behind the cloak of social media is probably a good first step.

IMAGE:
Ryan Lochte during his interview with NBC IMAGE: NBC NEWS VIA YOUTUBE

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