Former Olympic swimming champion a part of U.S. Capitol siege

American Klete Keller, who received two Olympic gold medals as a relay teammate of Michael Phelps, was recognized as being among the many Donald Trump supporters who stormed the U.S. Capitol final week, in response to a number of reviews.
Swimming information web site SwimSwam stated in a report that at the least a dozen individuals inside the sport recognized the towering man carrying a U.S. Olympic staff jacket contained in the constructing as Keller after reviewing video and screenshots of the riot.

At 15 seconds in:See Olympic Gold Medalist Swimmer Klete Keller carrying his Red Patch USA Swim Jacket and combating police. https://t.co/Fsc4iFokpu
— Trump Coup+ 400K Dead, 22mil Cases, 40mil Unemploy (@abutler04) January 12, 2021
USA Swimming didn’t reply when requested whether or not they might verify if Keller was a part of the gang that entered the legislative advanced as lawmakers started certifying Democrat Joe Biden’s Nov. 3 election victory over Trump.
Attempts to achieve Keller had been unsuccessful.
A girl who answered the cellphone for the Colorado and Ohio-based actual property company the place Keller works informed Reuters, “we are not commenting on anything right now” after which hung up.
In one of many movies, which was taken by a reporter from conservative information outlet Townhall, a person recognized as Keller is seen among the many crowd that cops try to push towards the U.S. Capitol exits.
Keller is a five-times Olympic medalist who held off Australian nice Ian Thorpe on the anchor leg of the 4x200m freestyle relay on the 2004 Athens Games to win gold for the United States.
Swimming World additionally stated it confirmed with sources that Keller was seen on the U.S. Capitol and added that the movies don’t present any violence on the a part of the 38-year-old.
According to the New York Times, Keller has deleted his social media accounts, a number of of which the publication stated had included a stream of pro-Trump messaging lately.
Trump exhorted 1000’s of supporters to march on the Capitol final Wednesday, prompting chaos by which crowds breached the constructing and compelled the evacuation of each the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives.
Five individuals, together with a police officer, died on account of the rampage.