"What would Ryan Lochte Do?” premiered Sunday night on E! Gainesville residents can't decide if the show will sink or swim.
During the show, Lochte, a 2007 UF graduate and Olympic swimming gold medalist, was seen at 101 Cantina, Splitz and Balls.
The show also filmed outside of The Swamp Restaurant. General Manager Nicholas Smith said the show doesn’t affect Gainesville as much as it affects Lochte.
“I don’t think it has a positive or negative aspect,” he said.
The Swamp Restaurant held a viewing party for the premiere, hoping to see the restaurant on TV. Smith said the film crew shot one segment at the restaurant, where Lochte was eating outside.
But the scene wasn’t in the premiere. Still, Smith doesn’t think the show will affect business.
“I don’t think, from a business standpoint, it’s going to necessarily draw a whole lot of business from our end,” he said.
UF student Sara Cooksey found the show to be silly. The aerospace engineering sophomore doesn’t think it will impact the university or Gainesville at all.
“I think it just reflects poorly on him, not really the school,” Cooksey said. “I just keep thinking if he’s actually like that.”
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