Six-time Olympic gold medalist Ryan Lochte will be joining the Missouri State swim program coaching staff this year.
Lochte will reportedly begin later this summer working under head coach Dave Collins “after his contract is officially approved by the university’s board of governors in June,” per the New York Post.
According to his contract, obtained by Front Office Sports, Lochte will earn an estimated $30,000 and will be eligible for bonuses, which include $750 for a Missouri Valley Conference men’s and women’s championship or co-championship.
There’s a $500 bonus for each NCAA Championship individual qualifier and $500 for each relay team that qualifies for the NCAA Championship, according to the outlet.
Lochte’s contract value, which breaks down to $34.10 an hour, is in line with what assistants Anna Miller and Lee Smothers have made.
Dave Collins celebrated the addition of Lochte among the coaching staff while the former Olympian said it will be “something I take seriously.”
“It’s about more than times and results,” Lochte said. “It’s about helping young men and women build discipline, resilience and confidence that will carry them far beyond the pool. I’ve lived the highs and the challenges of this sport, and I want to use that perspective to guide them, support them and help them reach their full potential in and out of the water.”
While Lochte had an impressive career as a decorated swimmer, controversy followed him outside the pool, starting with the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, in which he and three other members of the American swim team vandalized a gas station bathroom before falsely claiming they had been robbed at gunpoint. He received a 10-month suspension due to the incident. Two years later, he was suspended for 14 months after the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency discovered he had received an “IV infusion of vitamins of more than 100mL during a 12-hour period without the proper exception needed from the agency.”
In 2025, Lochte was baptized as he rededicated his life to Christ.
“My heart is full of so much love and happiness and I’m just so thankful for everything God is doing and going to do in my life. Thank you for all those who have loved and supported me throughout my life, you mean so much to me!” he said.