--- title: Rio Olympics: Ryan Lochte Talks About Michael Phelps description: Ryan Lochte says if not for Michael Phelps, he'd be the Michael Phelps of swimming. canonical: https://time.com/4448892/ryan-lochte-michael-phelps-rio-olympics/ author: Ashley Hoffman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-08-11T19:12:32.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:35:26.383Z og:title: Ryan Lochte: 'I'd Be the Michael Phelps of Swimming If He Wasn't There' og:description: Ryan Lochte explains what a life without Michael Phelps would be like og:url: https://time.com/4448892/ryan-lochte-michael-phelps-rio-olympics/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2564f13347e90261/6988a1df428a9edfe8cd3da1/rio-2016-olympics-ryan-lochte-platinum-blonde-hair.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Swimming - Olympics: Day 4 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Ryan Lochte: 'I'd Be the Michael Phelps of Swimming If He Wasn't There' twitter:description: Ryan Lochte explains what a life without Michael Phelps would be like twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2564f13347e90261/6988a1df428a9edfe8cd3da1/rio-2016-olympics-ryan-lochte-platinum-blonde-hair.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Ryan Lochte: 'I'd Be the Michael Phelps of Swimming If He Wasn't There' by [Ashley Hoffman](https://time.com/author/ashley-hoffman/) ## Ashley Hoffman Aug 11, 2016 7:12 PM UTC  Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte, Conor Dwyer, Francis Haas of Team USA celebrate winning the gold medal during the medal ceremony of the men's 200m freestyle relay on day 4 of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at Olympic Aquatics Stadium on August 9, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte, Conor Dwyer, Francis Haas of Team USA celebrate winning the gold medal during the medal ceremony of the men's 200m freestyle relay on day 4 of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at Olympic Aquatics Stadium on August 9, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.Jean Catuffe-Getty Images by [Ashley Hoffman](https://time.com/author/ashley-hoffman/) ## Ashley Hoffman Aug 11, 2016 7:12 PM UTC Ryan Lochte has always been the ultimate [sportsman](http://olympics.time.com/2012/07/19/ryan-lochte-michael-phelps-rivalry/) when he talks about [Michael Phelps](http://time.com/4446837/rio-2016-olympics-michael-phelps-chad-le-clos/), the superior athlete who he refuses to call his rival, and now he’s gifted everyone with the quote of a lifetime about his teammate-competitor. Is he super pumped that Phelps is exemplifying American excellence in general, beating [a 2,168-year-old record ](http://deadspin.com/michael-phelps-tied-a-2-168-year-old-olympic-record-1785077553)and scoring more gold than anyone ever? In a [pre-dye job](http://time.com/4433738/ryan-lochte-unveils-dramatic-new-hair-for-rio-olympics-2016/) interview NBC released Thursday before the two Olympic Village roommates compete in the 200-meter individual medley on Thursday night, Lochte answers truthfully in a way that washes over you like champagne rain drops. NBC to Lochte: “Are you glad that Michael’s been around in your era?” Lochte: “Yes and no. My career would definitely be different. I guess you would say I’d be like the Michael Phelps of swimming if he wasn’t there. But at the same time I love a challenge, and that’s why I do the events that I do and going up against him is a challenge.” Congratulations as always to Phelps, and Locthe, congratulations on being the Ryan Lochte of self-knowledge, honesty, and telling faces. If Phelps keeps his promise to retire after Rio, Lochte could take his place. > [](https://twitter.com/NBCOlympics/status/763791640414662656) Watch the rest of the interview [here](http://www.nbcolympics.com/video/now-mature-ryan-lochte-ready-challenge-michael-phelps). ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4448892/ryan-lochte-michael-phelps-rio-olympics/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4448892/ryan-lochte-michael-phelps-rio-olympics/"},"headline":"Ryan Lochte: 'I'd Be the Michael Phelps of Swimming If He Wasn't There'","datePublished":"2016-08-11T19:12:32.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:35:26.383Z","description":"A world without Phelps?","url":"https://time.com/4448892/ryan-lochte-michael-phelps-rio-olympics/","keywords":["Newsfeed","swimming","Michael Phelps","Summer Olympics","Ryan Lochte","2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2564f13347e90261/6988a1df428a9edfe8cd3da1/rio-2016-olympics-ryan-lochte-platinum-blonde-hair.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Ashley Hoffman","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/ashley-hoffman/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2564f13347e90261/6988a1df428a9edfe8cd3da1/rio-2016-olympics-ryan-lochte-platinum-blonde-hair.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Swimming - Olympics: Day 4","caption":"Swimming - Olympics: Day 4","creditText":"Jean Catuffe-Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4448892/ryan-lochte-michael-phelps-rio-olympics/","name":"Ryan Lochte: 'I'd Be the Michael Phelps of Swimming If He Wasn't There'"}}]}] ```