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| Full name | Joseph Bentz | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nickname | Gunnar | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National team |  United States | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | January 3, 1996 Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 183 lb (83 kg) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Sport | Swimming | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Strokes | Individual medley, freestyle, butterfly | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club |
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| College team | University of Georgia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coach | Jack Bauerle Eddie Reese | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Joseph "Gunnar" Bentz (born January 3, 1996) is an American former competitive swimmer and Olympic gold medalist.
Bentz graduated from St. Pius X Catholic High School in 2014. [1]
He is a four-time medalist (two gold, two bronze) at the FINA World Junior Swimming Championships and a two-time medalist (one silver, one bronze) at the Pan American Games. [2] Bentz competes for the University of Georgia with the Georgia Bulldogs swimming and diving team in American collegiate swimming. Bentz was the 2015 USA National Champion in the 400m Individual Medley. In June 2016, he qualified for the 4 × 200 m freestyle relay at the 2016 Summer Olympics. [3] Bentz swam in the preliminaries of the 4 × 200 m freestyle relay at the 2016 Summer Olympics. Replaced by the team of Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte, Conor Dwyer, and Townley Haas, Bentz was not in the final but received a medal. [4]
In 2018, Gunnar Bentz was qualified for the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima, Peru. [5]
On the morning of August 14, Bentz's teammate Ryan Lochte claimed that he, Bentz, Jack Conger, and Jimmy Feigen were robbed after four men forced them out of their taxi at gunpoint. [6] Bentz, 20 at the time of this incident, was required to be back in the Olympic Village by 1:00 am as the 1:00 am curfew was relaxed just for team members 21 or older by Frank Busch, U.S.A. Swimming's national team director. [7] The Brazilian authorities questioned this account, and after Lochte had flown home on August 16, Bentz and Conger were prevented from leaving the country and their passports were seized; this was done in order to have them testify as witnesses of the incident. [8] [9] Civil Police of Rio de Janeiro concluded that the athletes were not robbed, but instead had been involved in an incident at a gas station in Barra da Tijuca, west of the city. [10] This investigation found that the swimmers stopped at a gas station near Casa França, where they were involved in a confrontation with security guards regarding vandalism some or all of the swimmers had caused in a bathroom while intoxicated. [11] They also claimed that the swimmers had already paid in cash 100 reais ($31) and $20 in U.S. currency as compensation for objects from the bathroom which were damaged, such as a soap holder, a mirror, and a "Please Do Not Enter" sign. [12]
According to anonymous police sources, Bentz and Conger told the police that Lochte's robbery story was fabricated. [13] The Associated Press reported that Bentz and Conger "refuted Lochte's claim that the group was held up by armed assailants". [14]
After Bentz returned to the United States, he released a statement about the incident. He admitted to urinating behind the gas station, and wrote that Lochte pulled down a framed metal advertisement, but denied witnessing any damage caused to the bathroom. [15]
In 2019, Bentz was member of the 2019 International Swimming League, representing Team Iron.
In 2021, Bentz qualified for the 2020 Olympic Team, placing 2nd in the 200m butterfly at the finals of the US Olympic Team Trials. [16]
| Event | Time | Venue | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 200 m freestyle | 1:47.33 | Omaha | June 28, 2016 |
| 200 m Butterfly | 1:55.34 | Omaha | June 16, 2021 |
| 200 m IM | 1:58.31 | Indianapolis | July 1, 2017 |
| 400 m IM | 4:11.66 | Indianapolis | June 29, 2017 |
Aaron Wells Peirsol is an American former competition swimmer and backstroke specialist who is a former world champion and world record-holder. He is a three-time Olympian and seven-time Olympic medalist. Individually, he currently holds the world record in the 200-meter backstroke event. In February 2011, Peirsol announced his retirement, saying, "I ended up doing everything I set out to do."
Jason Edward Lezak is an American former competitive swimmer and swimming executive. As a swimmer, Lezak specialized in the 50-meter and 100-meter freestyle races. His pro career lasted for nearly fifteen years, spanning four Olympic games and eight Olympic medals.
David Marsh is the associate head coach at University of California, Berkeley and head coach of Team Elite in San Diego, California, and the ‘Professional Adviser’ of the Israel Swimming Association.
Ryan Steven Lochte is an American former competition swimmer and 12-time Olympic medalist. He is the third-most decorated swimmer in Olympic history measured by total number of medals, behind only Michael Phelps and Katie Ledecky. Lochte's seven individual Olympic medals rank second in history in men's swimming, tied for second among all Olympic swimmers. He currently holds the world records in the 200-meter individual medley. As part of the American teams, he also holds the world record in the 4×200-meter freestyle and 4×100-meter freestyle (mixed) relay.
Nathan Ghar-jun Adrian is an American competitive swimmer and five-time Olympic gold medalist who formerly held the American record in the long course 50-meter freestyle event.
The Golden Goggle Awards, presented by the USA Swimming Foundation, is an awards ceremony which recognizes and honors the accomplishments of swimmers who represented the United States, that is USA Swimming National Team members, over the last year. The awards were established in 2004 with the first awards ceremony held in November of the same year in New York City. There are eight main categories: Breakout Performer of the Year, Coach of the Year, Perseverance Award, Relay Performance of the Year, Male Race of the Year, Female Race of the Year, Male Athlete of the Year, and Female Athlete of the Year. Nominees in each category are announced in advance of the awards ceremony and recipients of each award are revealed at the ceremony itself. Winners for each award are determined by a selection panel and fan votes. The awards ceremony serves as a fundraiser for the foundation, with seats and tables available for purchase and proceeds going to the foundation and other humanitarian efforts such as aid relief for those affected by Hurricane Katrina. The dress code for attendees is black tie. Localities hosting the annual ceremony vary and include cities such as New York City, Los Angeles, and Miami.
Michael Fred Phelps II is an American former competitive swimmer. He is the most successful and most decorated Olympian of all time with a total of 28 medals. Phelps also holds the all-time records for Olympic gold medals (23), Olympic gold medals in individual events (13), and Olympic medals in individual events (16). At the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Phelps tied the record of eight medals of any color at a single Games, held by gymnast Alexander Dityatin, by winning six gold and two bronze medals. Four years later, when he won eight gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Games, he broke fellow American swimmer Mark Spitz's 1972 record of seven first-place finishes at any single Olympic Games. At the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Phelps won four gold and two silver medals, and at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, he won five gold medals and one silver. This made him the most successful athlete of the Games for the fourth Olympics in a row.
Scott Tyler Clary is an American former competition swimmer and Olympic gold medalist. In his Olympic debut at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Clary won gold in the 200-meter backstroke in Olympic record time. In total, he won sixteen medals in major international competitions: three gold, eight silver, and five bronze spanning the Summer Olympics, the FINA World Championships, the Pan Pacific Championships, and the Pan American Games.
James Feigen is a former American competition swimmer who specializes in freestyle events. He won a gold medal for the 4x100-meter freestyle relay for the 2016 Summer Olympics. Previously, he won a silver medal as a member of the second-place U.S. team in the 4×100-meter freestyle relay at the 2012 Summer Olympics.
Conor James Dwyer is a former American competition swimmer and Olympic gold medalist. He competed in freestyle and medley events, and won a gold medal as a member of the winning U.S. 4×200-meter freestyle relay team at the 2012 Summer Olympics. In total, he has won seventeen medals in major international competitions: nine gold, six silver, and two bronze spanning the Summer Olympics, the FINA World Championships, the Pan Pacific Championships, and the Pan American Games. Dwyer placed second at the 2016 US Olympic Swimming Trials in the 400m freestyle.
Ryan Fitzgerald MurphyOLY is an American competitive swimmer specializing in backstroke. He is a five-time Olympic gold medalist and the former world-record holder in the men's 100-meter backstroke.
Lochte is a German surname found in both Germany and the United States. Notable people with the surname include:
John Peet Conger is an American competition swimmer who specializes in butterfly and freestyle events. He is an Olympic gold medalist in the 4 × 200 m freestyle relay from the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and the current American record-holder in the 200-yard butterfly with a time of 1:37.35.
Chase Tyler Kalisz is an American swimmer who specializes in individual medley events. He is an Olympic gold medalist in the 400-meter individual medley at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, an Olympic silver medalist at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and a two-time World Aquatics Championships gold medalist.
The 2016 USA Swimming Olympic trials were held for the third straight quadrennial at CenturyLink Center Omaha in Omaha, Nebraska from June 26 to July 3, 2016. Those qualifying competed for the United States in Swimming at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The men's 200 metre individual medley event at the 2016 Summer Olympics took place on 10–11 August at the Olympic Aquatics Stadium.
William Andrew Licon is an American competitive swimmer who specializes in breaststroke and medley events. He previously competed for the professional team LA Current in the International Swimming League. Licon is a three-time World Championship medalist, a two-time Pan American Games gold medalist and has been a member of the United States national team since 2015. He is the current American record-holder and former NCAA & US Open record-holder in the 200-yard breaststroke.
A number of notable controversies and concerns associated with the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, emerged which were the subject of public debate and media commentary.
Lochtegate is the colloquial name of the scandal involving United States swim team members Ryan Lochte, Jimmy Feigen, Gunnar Bentz, and Jack Conger during the 2016 Summer Olympics held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. While initial news stories reported that Lochte and three other US swimmers had been robbed at gunpoint after a night out in Rio, later details emerged that the "armed robbers posing as police" were actually security guards at a gas station where the swimmers had urinated outside the bathroom and Lochte allegedly vandalized a framed poster, and ended with the swimmers providing money to the guards. Some of the swimmers were detained in Brazil as witnesses. Ultimately, the athletes each released statements, and one swimmer paid a fine of approximately $10,800 to a Brazilian charity in order to get his passport back. Lochte apologized for not being more candid about the gas station dispute, and subsequently lost four major sponsorships.
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