- Swimmer Klete Keller, who won the Olympic gold medal, was charged after taking part in the crowd of supporters of President Donald Trump who stormed the US capital last week.
- He was seen on a video in the Capitol building and later identified by the swimming news website SwimSwam and by coaches and former teammates who spoke to The New York Times.
- Those who spoke to The Times said they were not surprised to see Keller at the riot, and that he had posted pro-Trump rhetoric on Facebook in recent years.
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A swimmer in the Olympic gold medal who was a relay teammate of Michael Phelps has been criminally charged after participating in the crowd of supporters of President Donald Trump who stormed the US capital last week.
Swimmer Klete Keller is facing charges of obstructing law enforcement officers who have official duties related to civil disorder, knowingly entering or staying in any restricted building or site without lawful authority, and violent trespassing and disorderly conduct on the Capitol. terrain.
It is unclear whether Keller was arrested.
He was seen on video of the Capitol riot that a reporter from the conservative newspaper Townhall posted on Twitter.
The swimming news website SwimSwam first identified Keller, and former teammates and coaches later identified him with The New York Times.
Keller, who is six feet six, was seen in a video wearing a U.S. Olympic team jacket with “USA” over his back, and his face was clearly visible.
He was not recorded participating in violent acts in the Capitol, although federal authorities charged many people with entering the building during the riot.
In an affidavit filed in court on Wednesday, FBI Special Agent Matthew Barofsky said officials helped identify Keller through SwimSwam’s article.
Barofsky also suggested that Keller’s height helped identify him, saying he was “one of the tallest individuals in the video depicting individuals” in the Capitol roundabout.
Keller, 38, won medals at the 2000, 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics while anchoring the 4×200 freestyle. In the 2004 race, Keller made Australian Ian Thorpe famous for helping his team, which included Phelps, win the gold with just 0.13 seconds.
However, his life after the Olympics was not as successful as he had hoped.
He told USA Swimming in 2018 that he had been unemployed for a while and lived out of his car after a divorce in 2014, and told NBC Sports that he had misplaced three of his Olympic medals.
In recent years, he has been working as a realtor in Colorado Springs, Colorado, reports The Gazette.
A USA Swimming spokesman told ESPN that they could not confirm or deny that it was Keller seen at the Capitol.
In a statement to Insider, USA Swimming said: “We respect the rights of private individuals and groups to protest peacefully, but in no way endorse the actions taken by those taken to the Capitol last week.
Former teammates and coaches who identified him to The Times said they were not surprised Keller took part in the riot.
They told the newspaper he recently deleted his Facebook, but had previously shared pro-Trump rhetoric.