LOS ANGELES (AP) — Ryan Lochte says he feels “a little hurt” after being involved in an altercation on “Dancing with the Stars” that prompted producers to cut to commercials.
The beleaguered swimmer was reportedly rushed by an unknown pair of men wearing anti-Lochte T-shirts while receiving his scores from judge Carrie Ann Inaba on Monday’s live installment of the celebrity ballroom dance competition.
“Hey, back off,” Inaba said as the altercation was occurring off screen.
When the show returned, “Dancing with the Stars” host Tom Bergeron explained they were interrupted by “a little incident” and thanked the ABC series’ security team “for staying in shape.”
The swimmer told Bergeron that “so many feelings are going through my head right now.” Lochte added that he was “a little hurt, but I came out here. I wanted to do something I’m completely not comfortable with, and I did.”
ABC did not immediately return messages seeking comment about the incident.
Lochte and teammates were involved in an early-morning drunken encounter at a Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, gas station during the Olympics before claiming they were threatened and robbed. He was banned for 10 months, required to forfeit $100,000 in bonuses and will miss the 2017 world championships.