Olympian Ryan Lochte's First 'DWTS' Performance Interrupted By Charging Audience Members

Publish Date
Tuesday, 13 September 2016, 2:50PM

In a bizarre incident on the season premiere of “Dancing With the Stars,” Ryan Lochte’s first performance judgment was interrupted by what appears to be someone trying to rush the stage.

The story is still currently developing, but here's the information we have so far.

Just as Lochte and dancing partner Cheryl Burke were hearing the judges’ opinions of their performance, at least two people (it’s currently unclear if there were more involved) tried to run on the stage.

 

 

Judge Carrie Ann Inaba could be seen trying to urge the person off, yelling, “Excuse me! Hey, back off!” A figure could briefly be seen rushing in front of the camera.

In a photo shared on Twitter, we can see two suspected culprits, wearing shirts with 'Lochte' crossed out. 

Lochte recently made headlines during the Olympics, claiming him and three team mates were allegedly robbed. It didn't take long for Brazilian authorities to cast doubt on Lochte's story, which initially appeared to be a distillation of what many see to be these Olympics' glaring problems, dangers and contradictions. 

At this stage we cannot confirm whether there was any link between the Rio 2016 events and tonight's DWTS show.

 

The show went straight to a commercial but when they returned Ryan opened up about the experience.

“So many feelings going through my head right now. A little hurt,” he explained.

ABC did not immediately respond to Variety‘s request for comment.

Take your Radio, Podcasts and Music with you

Connect with The Hits:

Sign up for newsletters