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Ryan Lochte recently penned an emotional letter to address and clarify the context behind a video shared by his estranged wife, Kayla Rae Reid. The clip, which features the Olympic swimmer’s vows from their 2018 wedding, surfaced on Reid’s Instagram following Lochte’s comments about their relationship in a promotion for his upcoming memoir.
The former “Playboy” model, who initiated divorce proceedings in March, uploaded the video after Lochte’s candid remark that he “barely knew” Kayla during their marriage. This statement was part of the promotional material for his new book.
“I’m writing this because I’m too emotional to speak right now,” Lochte, 41, confessed. “Dealing with personal issues in the public eye is incredibly challenging, and I’m grateful for the chance to clarify my recent comments regarding my ex-wife. I recognize that my words have caused a stir, and I want to emphasize that hurting anyone was never my intent. I simply wished to be truthful about my feelings.”
“There’s much happening behind the scenes that I prefer to keep private for the sake of my children,” he continued. “I understand that Kayla showcased our wedding vows to underline the sincerity of our past bond. While I respect her perspective, I maintain my view that we never truly knew each other, and, frankly, I was still figuring out who I was. I am deeply thankful for our three children and cherish the love we shared back then.”
Lochte, who shares parenting responsibilities for their son Caiden Zane, 8, and daughters Liv Rae, 7, and Georgia June, 2, with Reid, admitted, “I wasn’t a good husband to Reid, but I’m working to distance myself from my past.”
“Therapy has been a transformative journey for me, helping me uncover insights about myself that I previously overlooked,” he continued. “I’m making a tremendous effort to separate myself from the past, as I’ve truly moved on.
“I deeply regret any disappointment I’ve caused to those in my life, including the mother of my children. I would be lying if I said I was a good husband. I wasn’t. I’m committed to working on myself every day.”
Lochte also explained why he’s selling his three of his six Olympic gold medals amid financial issues.
“I also would like to clarify the selling of my medals,” the 12 medal-winner wrote. “I never swam for the gold medals. My passion has always been about being one of the best swimmers in the world. Those medals? They were just the cherry on top of an incredible journey.
“With 90 international medals – including Olympics, world championships, Pan Pacs and Pan Am Games – I’ve been fortunate to achieve more than any swimmer out there. But what means the most to me is what I’ve done with them. I’ve given away medals to fans and young kids in the stands, because it’s never been just about me. It’s about inspiring the next generation and helping them chase their dreams. The memories, the hard work and the connection with all of you are what I treasure the most.”
Lochte’s girlfriend, Molly Gillihan praised him for his growth in the comments section.
“My darling 😢 you are everything and more to me and all six of the munchkins we share in this big crazy mess of a family,” Gillihan, a mother of three, wrote. “Who you are now is who anyone would be lucky to have and know. Watching you grow this year is the biggest blessing to all of us. I love you so much sweetheart.”
In his announcement for his memoir, Lochte painted a bleak picture of his relationship with Reid.
“After the Rio scandal, I found myself at my lowest point, with a son on the way with someone I barely knew, who constantly reminded me that he would be forever disappointed in the father I had become,” he wrote in the Dec. 9 post.
“Someone who told me I wasn’t strong enough, man enough… just not enough. I couldn’t believe what my life had become. I really couldn’t. I was depressed to my core, turning to alcohol, drugs, and sleep. Oh, the amount of sleep. Every day, I woke up to be belittled and reminded of my constant failures, day in and day out, until I was eventually kicked out of our family home.”
Reid, who is a podcast host and a realtor, shared the video of their wedding vows on Dec. 11.
“Just going to leave this here 🙂,” she captioned her post.
In June, Reid explained in a note on her Instagram Story that her seven-year marriage to Lochte was “irretrievably broken.”
During a July interview with the Daily Mail, Lochte explained that he and Gillihan fell for each other at their kids’ school in Gainesville, Fla.
Lochte previously claimed he and Reid hadn’t been together for almost two years when she revealed their divorce in June.