Olympics Day 1 - Swimming — Ryan Lochte with his Gold Medal during the Medal Ceremony for the Men's 400m Individual Medley at the 2012 Olympic Games in London, England

Did Ryan Lochte sell his medals? Everything to know about what the 12-time Olympic medalist's story

Modified Mar 13, 2024 12:32 GMT

The American swimmer, Ryan Lochte's career has been extraordinary so far. He has earned 12 Olympic medals, including six gold, three silver and three bronze medals. Moreover, he has bagged 27 medals from the World Championships (Long Course) and 38 medals from the World Championships (Short Course).

Lochte decided to put his medals for auction in July 2022. He offered six of his Olympic medals for auction, one of which was individually sold, the rest were sold in a pair and a trio.

Lochte has often given away his medals even when he won any domestic meets. The funds collected from the auction were given to the Jorge Nation Foundation, a non-profit organization that raises money for terminal or seriously ill children to go on a once-in-a-lifetime trip of their choice. Lochte had been in partnership with the organization for more than a decade.

During an interview with the NBC News, he expressed his love for the medals but he refrained from keeping them with him.

“I don’t want people to think I didn’t care about the medals. I cherish them, but they’re just sitting in my closet collecting dust,” Lochte conveyed.

“I feel amazing about [the auction] just because I’m going to be helping kids out. I never kept any medal. I’m not the one to keep memorabilia," he said.

Which events did Ryan Lochte won the medals that he put for auction

Gold medalist Ryan Lochte of the United States poses during the medal ceremony for the Men's 200m Individual Medley Final at the16th FINA World Championships

Ryan Lochte put his six medals from the 2004 Athens Olympics, the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and the 2012 London Olympics.

The American swimmer put an individual silver medal up for the auction, which he bagged at the 2004 Athens Olympics in the men's 200m individual medley. He finished behind fellow American Michael Phelps and left behind George Bovell.

The next pair he put for auction were the bronze medals that he clinched in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, Tokyo. One of the medals was from the men's 200m individual medley, where he again finished behind Phelps and Laszlo Cseh Jr. The other bronze medal was bagged by him in the 400m individual medley, where again he finished behind the top two swimmers of the 200m individual medley.

Ryan Lochte offered the trio medals for auction which he won at the 2012 London Olympics. The medals included his victories in the 200m individual medley and 4x100 meter freestyle relay, where he finished in second place, and a third-place finish in the 200m backstroke.