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RIO DE JANEIRO -- Two American Olympic swimmers landed in Miami on Friday morning after being pulled off a plane a day earlier to testify about an alleged robbery at the Rio Olympics that Brazilian police later deemed erroneous. Branden Oliver Jersey .The lawyer for a third U.S. swimmer said he would make a $10,800 payment and leave Brazil later in the day.The drama surrounding the alleged robbery of American swimmers -- and their ever-changing descriptions of it -- has shocked and deeply angered Brazilians, who said it cast a false negative shadow on their city and their Olympics. The story has also dominated Olympic headlines, overshadowing the worthy accomplishments of athletes who had trained for years just to get to Rio and set records during their performances at these Olympics.The rapid-fire developments early Friday came hours after police announced that Ryan Lochte and three of his teammates had not been held at gunpoint after a night of partying, as Lochte claimed. Instead, Brazilian police said the men, while intoxicated, vandalized a gas station bathroom and were questioned by armed guards before they paid for the damage and left.The saga has been an embarrassment for the U.S. Olympic team, which has otherwise dominated the games. It also deeply wounded a country eager to prove it could host the first Games in Latin America despite concerns it could not keep athletes and spectators safe from rampant street crime.No robbery was committed against these athletes. They were not victims of the crimes they claimed, civil police chief Fernando Veloso said during a news conference.As two of the swimmers, Gunnar Bentz and Jack Conger, were whisked through airport security and onto a plane home Thursday night from Rio de Janeiro, their attorney insisted they had nothing to do with Lochtes story. Lochte himself left the country earlier this week.Bentz and Conger, who arrived at Miami International Airport around 6:30 a.m. on Friday, were heard only as witnesses. This has to be made very, very clear, lawyer Sergio Riera told The Associated Press. They did not make any untruthful testimony. They did not lie in their statements.A lawyer for another swimmer, James Feigen, said early Friday that the athlete had reached an agreement with a judge in which he planned to donate 35,000 Brazilian reals ($10,800) to an institution and leave the country later in the day.Attorney Breno Melaragno said under the agreement, Feigen will make the donation, get his passport back and depart.Melaragno did not specify where the money will go, but his use of the term institution can be taken to mean a charity. He said that under Brazilian law, a donation can be made to avoid criminal prosecution for minor offenses, but he did not say which charge was being contemplated.Although police appear mostly finished with their probe, the case may be far from settled. Police have said they are considering charges of falsely reporting a crime and destruction of property, both of which can carry up to six months in jail or a fine.Lochtes attorney has insisted the story wasnt made up -- but neither he nor Lochte commented on the police account after it unfolded.The saga began when Lochte said he, Conger, Bentz and Feigen were held at gunpoint and robbed several hours after the last Olympic swimming races ended. That claim began to unravel when police said that investigators could not find evidence to substantiate it.Then security video reviewed by police confirmed that the athletes vandalized parts of the gas station, leading to an encounter with station employees.The video shows one of the swimmers pulling a sign off a wall and dropping it onto the ground. A gas station worker arrives, and other workers inspect the damage. Veloso said the swimmers broke a door, a soap dispenser and a mirror.The swimmers eventually talk with station workers, and their cab leaves. In another sequence, the swimmers appear to briefly raise their hands while talking to someone and sit down on a curb.After a few minutes, the swimmers stand up and appear to exchange something -- perhaps cash, as police said -- with one of the men.The footage doesnt show a weapon, but a police official speaking on condition of anonymity because the investigation was ongoing said two guards pointed guns at the swimmers. Veloso said the guards did not use excessive force and would have been justified in drawing their weapons because the athletes were conducting themselves in a violent way.A station employee called police, and the guards and employees tried to get the swimmers and the taxi driver to stay until authorities arrived, some even offering to help interpret between English and Portuguese, Veloso said. But he said the athletes wanted to leave, so they paid 100 Brazilian reals (about US $33) and $20 in U.S. currency and left.Police said the swimmers had been unable to provide key details in early interviews, saying they had been intoxicated. The police official said officers grew suspicious when security video showed the swimmers returning to the athletes village wearing watches, which would have likely been taken in a robbery.Bentz and Conger told police that they felt Lochte had lied about the situation in media interviews, according to text of the statements released by Rio police.We got pulled over, in the taxi, and these guys came out with a badge, a police badge, no lights, no nothing just a police badge and they pulled us over, Lochte told NBCs Today the morning after the incident. They pulled out their guns, they told the other swimmers to get down on the ground -- they got down on the ground. I refused, I was like we didnt do anything wrong, so -- Im not getting down on the ground.And then the guy pulled out his gun, he cocked it, put it to my forehead and he said, Get down, and I put my hands up, I was like whatever. He took our money, he took my wallet -- he left my cellphone, he left my credentials.The debacle prompted both wild speculation and social media mockery, which quickly turned to scorn after the official account went public. #LochteGate trended on Twitter, with users sharing video footage and posting comments about white privilege and rude Americans.David Fleischer, a political scientist at the University of Brasilia, said the incident touched a nerve in Brazil because of the countrys history and cases of people committing crimes while impersonating police.The story did have some sense of validity, but it didnt bear out and it made them look bad worldwide, he said.That outrage was evident Thursday, as onlookers shouted liars and shameful at Bentz and Conger as they left a police station where they gave statements.Although Lochte has medaled often, his accomplishments have long been overshadowed by those of teammate Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian in history. Lochte, a 12-time medalist, won a gold in Rio in a relay race alongside Phelps.Lochte and the other swimmers could face sanctions from USA Swimming, including fines or suspension. The group, as well as Olympic officials, publicly expressed disappointment and said they would further examine the matter.We apologize to our hosts in Rio and the people of Brazil for this distracting ordeal in the midst of what should rightly be a celebration of excellence, the U.S. Olympic Committee said.Information from The Associated Press was used in this report. Derek Watt Jersey . - Goaltender Philippe Desrosiers of the Rimouski Oceanic has broken a shutout record that was only three months old in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. Joe Barksdale Jersey . Meanwhile, there were huge victories for Sunderland and West Ham over fellow relegation rivals, leaving the battle to avoid the drop up for grabs with the bottom 11 teams separated by just six points. Eden Hazard and Fernando Torres scored second-half goals to seal a fourth straight victory for Chelsea, which climbed above Arsenal and Manchester City in the standings ahead of their games on Monday and Sunday respectively. http://www.chargersfootballpro.com/Chargers-Jahleel-Addae-Jersey/ . -- Matt Rupert scored once in regulation and again in the shootout as the London Knights extended their win streak to nine games by defeating the Owen Sound Attack 4-3 on Friday in Ontario Hockey League action. TORONTO -- The 2016 World Cup of Hockey, which culminated with Canadas 2-1 victory over Europe on Thursday night, was a joint venture between the NHL and the National Hockey League Players Association, which split the events profits 50-50. ESPN.coms Pierre LeBrun sat down with NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr on Thursday night before the final game to discuss the events impact and its future.?Pierre LeBrun:?Can you share your observations so far on how the World Cup has played out?Donald Fehr: The first thing I would obviously look for is, how do the players feel? And it seems to be uniformly positive. They like the event, they like the format, they really enjoy the level of the competition and doing it in one place without having to fly around the world. So thats really good.Secondly, I think the public acceptance of the quality of the event has also been really good. In terms of the future though, and going back to see what could we have done better or differently -- what would it look like if it was in a different place, if the format was slightly altered -- thats yet to come. I think were going to examine it to see what can be made better, not to see what was a problem.LeBrun: [The NHLPA] has agreed with the league that there will be another World Cup, right? There wont be another 12-year wait like the last time?Fehr: No, [the next one will be held in] 2020, absent something very unusual happening.LeBrun: That leads to my next question. Theres an opt-out window in 2019 for either side to announce it is pulling out of the collective bargaining agreement (in September 2020). What impact could that have on a 2020 World Cup?Fehr: Theoretically it could have an impact -- just like anytime youre negotiating, it could have an impact on the [NHL] season. But you cant plan for that. You have to plan for normal operations and to get ready to make it work. One of the side benefits that I hope grows out of this effort is that we develop a better day-by-day working relationship (with the league) -- not just the labor relations, but in day-by-day [issues], and that we learn to appreciate what the other side can bring. We learn to make it better. Maybe its a little extra nudge to try to avoid the problems that have plagued the sport for so long.LeBrun: Well, gee, that sounds promising. But I guess well see.Fehr (smiling): We will always see ...LeBrun: Many hockey fans who tweet at me seem to confuse the existence of this event as a replacement for the Olympics. I keep telling them that one has nothing to do with the other. In a perfect world, I think you believe that both could exist side by side, correct?Fehr: Yes, I personally do. I dont think theres any doubt about that. The Olympics, you have to remember, is an event onto itself; its unlike anything else. Its a multisport event, you have people from all over the world and it has its own special charm, its own special issues. But its distinct from anything else.Thats an entirely different thing, I believe, than one sport saying: Look, we want to have a celebration for ourselves. We want to have the very best. And I think that we can have a higher quality of competition here than we can (in the Olympics), just like the U.S. Open is likely to have a higher quality of competition than the Olympic golf tournament is ever going to have. And therefore, you can do both. And maybe you can do some other things, too, as you begin to grow the game internationally. But one doesnt necessarily preclude the other at all.LeBrun: This week the NHL painted a bleak picture for participation in the 2018 Olympics in South Korea unless theres a change in tone from the IOC as far as covering some the costs that have been covered in the past (for players travel and insurance, etc.). Whats your sense of where this stands right now in regard to South Korea?Fehr: Well, Im going to say a couple of things about that. First of all, the players obviously want to go, proovided appropriate agreements can be reached. Tyrell Williams Jersey. . Theres no question about that. The second thing is, we do have a long history of certain kinds of expenses being covered, basically in recognition of the fact that youre shutting down a $4 billion business in the middle of the season. The third thing is that, although I dont know what the magic dates are for [finishing] negotiations, I recall that we didnt wrap up an agreement on Sochi until seven or eight months ahead of time. Well just take it as a matter of course. I choose to look at it in an optimistic way. Hopefully, itll work.LeBrun: The league seems to be suggesting a Dec. 31 deadline for an Olympic decision.Fehr: Well, Dec. 31 has some relevance because schedules have to be put together. It doesnt mean there arent alternatives or you couldnt move some things around at a later point in time. But the requirement to put a schedule together is not a made-up thing. Thats real.LeBrun: There has been a lot chatter about what the NHLPA does with its side of the profits. You are a co-owner in this particular event, which in itself in unique. Youre going to make some money -- probably not as much as youd hoped. You have a 700-plus player membership but also 160-plus players within that who played in this tournament. The debate internally, from what I can gather, is what take the players here at the tournament should get compared with the players at large. Is that fair?Fehr: First of all, theres a lot of debate and discussion going on, and itll continue over the next several weeks -- but I would be surprised if it persists past the beginning of the season. But its really funny. When unions come out and make a pronouncement -- Weve looked at this, and 100 percent of everybody agrees to A, B, C -- then people say theres been no debate, no discussion, no democracy, no anything like that. And then when an issue comes up, and the players are actively debating, discussing, talking among themselves, trying to reach consensus, then people want to talk about division.All I can say is, thats what the players are supposed to do. And thats what we encourage them to do. Im not concerned about it getting worked out in a reasonable time frame. Thats not a problem at all. I dont think theres ever been any question that, on a per-person basis, the players who participated [in the World Cup] would get multiples of what would be distributed to anybody else. Exactly what that percentage is going to be is what the discussion is about.LeBrun: My last question has to do with the format of the tournament. Theres a debate already about whether the next World Cup should have a traditional field, country versus country only, or whether it should bring back the 23-and-under North America team and Team Europe. What are your thoughts?Fehr: One of the most positive things about this is that when the format was announced, you had a lot of questions, a lot of discussion, a lot of people who are very close to the game saying, What about this? What about tradition? Hows it going to work?To see those opinions change, in some cases, as we got close to the event, and then to see that youre going to have discussion afterward, that suggests to me that people care -- that they think its important, that its an issue that bears serious attention. And thats all to the good.Were going to look at everything, and obviously well talk to the players. We want to look at the reaction in various markets, including the Team Europe markets. We want to see if it makes sense to go another route, or if it makes sense to continue this or to tweak it somehow. And I dont want to prejudge it, any of it. One of the benefits we will have by doing that analysis post-facto, rather than ahead of time, is that well be doing it informed by hard data. And that matters. Cheap NFL JerseysCheap NFL Jerseys ChinaCheap Jerseys From ChinaCheap NFL Jerseys AuthenticWholesale Jerseys ChinaCheap NFL Jerseys ChinaNFL Cheap Jerseys ' ' '
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