Ryan Lochte has changed his story once again.
For the better this time, however.
Back on August 14, Lochte told the public that he and three U.S. Olympic teammates were robbed at gunpoint in Rio.
But authorities investigated the alleged incident and could no evidence of such an armed robbery, leading to the eventual admission by Lochte"s teammates that they actually caused quite a drunken raucous at a gas station.
They vandalized the property, security guards confronted them about it and at least one of these guards did draw a weapon, ordering the group to pay for the damage.
After it became clear that Lochte had fudged the truth lied, he issued a half-hearted apology that did not go over very well at all.
So Saturday evening, in a sit-down with Matt Lauer, Lochte tried again.
I"m taking full responsibility for it because I overexaggerated that story and if I never did that, we wouldn"t be in this mess," he shared.
"Those guys would never be in Rio. None of this would have happened. It was my immature behavior."
The 12-time medal winner said he “definitely had too much to drink that night,” saying he’s unable to say whether he was robbed or extorted.
"All I know is there was a gun pointed at us, and we were demanded to give money," he said.
Lochte left Brazil the day after the incident, but his teammates remained.
They actually got pulled off a plane and had their passports confiscated until they spoke to authorities and told them the truth.
"I let my team down,” Lochte said through tears to Lauer.
“I don’t want them to think that I left them dry. I took away from their accomplishments by being immature for one night. That’s what hurts the most."
Six more minutes of Lauer"s interview with Locthe will air on Monday.
For now, though, Locthe seems to understand the mess he caused.
"I’m embarrassed for myself… I know what I did was wrong," he said. "All I can do now is better myself in making sure this stuff never happens again.
"I don’t want them to look at me like a drunk frat boy. I definitely want to be a role model for those young kids."
WATCH SNIPPETS OF THE INTERVIEW HERE:
