In an interview with SwimSwam’s Garrett McCaffrey after the final night of the 2013 Grand Prix, Olympic champion Ryan Lochte relit expectations that his training will eventually lead him away from Gainesville and the Florida program that has given him so much success and out to the west coast.
In an interview after the meet, Lochte said that he plans on heading to California in August. “If my show gets a 2nd season it’ll be in Califonria,” he quipped, alluding to the E! reality show What Would Ryan Lochte Do? that premiers on April 21st.
Lochte’s move was a hot subject last season after the local Gainesville newspaper said that he would be moving to Los Angeles. He backed off of those plans early after the Olympics, but now says he plans to make the move after this summer’s World Championships in Barcelona.
This could be a good move for him in the sense that his training wouldn’t necessarily be as interrupted to pursue his interests outside of the pool. It would take much less commuting to be a part of the fashion industry and the entertainment industry if he were living on the west coast as compared to Gainesville.
Speculation had long been that he’d end up at USC with Dave Salo, but after Mesa he named either USC or the California Aquatics programs as possibilities. In either situation, it would be a vastly different training environment than he’s been used to under Gregg Troy, specifically as both Salo and Cal head coach Dave Durden use much less yardage to train that Troy’s Florida program does.
Update: In response to Lochte’s comments, Dave Salo said that while he and Ryan have a “great relationship,” they have never had a conversation about such a move. He did say though if that at some point he does consider a move to USC, they would have a “thorough conversation.”
Garrett McCaffrey will post the full interview as soon as possible.
California girls will be hoping his Mum stays in Florida .