RIO DE JANEIRO — It was a near-perfect Olympics.
The Americans crushed the medals table, both in the overall count and those all-important golds. Fears about Zika and athletes getting sick from polluted water were vastly overblown. The people of Brazil were warm and welcoming.
And then there was Ryan Lochte.
His unfortunately bleached hair should have been his biggest cause for embarrassment in Rio. But no. He had to go and be the ugly American, damaging a sign at a gas station and then “over exaggerating” his claims that he and three teammates were robbed at gunpoint by men posing as police to the point it became an international incident.
Way to make it all about you, Ryan.
“It was not perfect. We did have the one regretful incident with our swimmers,” U.S. Olympic Committee chief executive officer Scott Blackmun said Sunday. “I think we all understand that they let down our athletes, they let down Americans and they really let down our hosts in Rio, who did such a wonderful job.
“We feel very badly about that.”
Discipline for the swimmers will be coming after USOC officials return home, and Blackmun wouldn’t speculate about what the penalties might be. But one should be standing up in front of the 500-plus U.S. athletes who competed here in Rio, particularly those whose events were in the second week, for stealing their thunder.
The 121 medals are the most for a U.S. team in a non-boycotted Games since 1904, and dwarfed the number won by runner-up China. Sure, the Americans piled up the hardware in the old standbys of track and field, basketball, gymnastics and swimming. (Having that Phelps guy helps. Simone Biles, too.)
But Helen Maroulis gave the United States its first gold in women’s wrestling, an Olympic sport since 2004. Gwen Jorgensen became the first American, male or female, to win gold in triathlon, which was first contested at the Sydney Games in 2000.
Four years after leaving London oh-for-equestrian, U.S. riders won a silver and two bronzes. After their disappearing act four years ago, the U.S. men’s boxers got a silver and a bronze.
“I love listening to the Star Spangled Banner. We were fortunate to be able to hear it a lot, and to see those images of our athletes on the podium, whether it was for gold or otherwise, are what I think the American public is going to remember,” Blackmun said.
You know what else people will remember? The U.S. women.
In a ringing endorsement for Title IX, the women were responsible for slightly over half the medals won by the Americans — 61 of 121. They walloped the men when it came to golds, claiming 27 of the 46 won by the U.S. team.
Biles and Katie Ledecky won five medals each, four of them gold. Among all athletes, from all countries, across all sports, only Phelps had more. Allyson Felix got her record fifth gold as part of the 4x400-meter relay.
The women’s eight rowing team won their 11th major title in a row, and third consecutive gold. Claressa Shields defended her middleweight title from London, the first U.S. boxer — male or female — to win gold twice. The women’s basketball team won gold for the sixth consecutive Games.
And on and on it went.
“We got ‘em,” Felix said with a grin when she heard the women had surpassed the U.S. men in medals won. “It’s just so special. … I’m just so humbled and honored to be a part of these amazing women.”
Sure, there were disappointments. The U.S. women’s soccer team lost to Sweden in the quarterfinals, their earliest exit ever from either the Olympics or World Cup. Kerri Walsh Jennings and April Ross lost in the semifinals, though they came back to win bronze.
The women’s volleyball team arrived in Rio ranked No. 1 and left as bronze medalists. The U.S. came away empty from both the men’s 200-meter final and the women’s high jump, events where they were expected to medal.
Three-time Olympic doubles champions Venus and Serena Williams lost their opening match, and Serena was upset in the third round of the singles tournament. Wrestler Jordan Burroughs didn’t see gold or any other color medal, losing as many matches in one day as he has the rest of his career.
But those will be fleeting memories from Rio.
So, too, USOC officials hope, the Lochte debacle.
“That doesn’t define the Games by any means,” Blackmun said. “These Games, for us, are going to be defined by the performance of our athletes."
By that measure, the Americans couldn't have done much better.
Practically perfect, in fact.
