Klete Keller, the Olympic gold medalist swimmer, is facing federal charges in
connection with the insurrection last week at the U.S. Capitol.
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| A screenshot from the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol insurrection allegedly shows gold medalist swimmer Klete Keller wearing an Olympic jacket. U.S. District Court |
He has been released from custody without posting bond but with orders to stay
away from Washington, D.C., except for court hearings and to consult with his
lawyers, according to The Associated Press. He appeared before a federal judge
in Denver.
Keller faces three criminal counts, according to court documents filed
Wednesday in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia: obstructing law
enforcement, knowingly entering a restricted building without lawful
authority, and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.
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| Keller's Colorado driver's license photo from 2019. U.S. District Court |
In a separate case, authorities have arrested a retired firefighter, Robert
Sanford of suburban Philadelphia, and charged him with assaulting Capitol
Police officers with a fire extinguisher during the insurrection. This
apparently is a different incident from the one that fatally injured Officer
Brian Sicknick.
Keller, 38, was part of U.S. Olympic teams in 2000, 2004 and 2008. He is
perhaps best known for holding off Australia's Ian Thorpe while swimming the
anchor leg of the 4x200-meter freestyle at the 2004 Athens Olympics to help
his team win by 0.13 seconds.
That relay team also included Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte.
The FBI said Keller's jacket helped identify him. According to court
documents, he was wearing a blue jacket with "USA" on the back and a "red and
white Olympic patch on the front left side."
Investigators also noted Keller's striking height. He stands at 6 feet and 6
inches.
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| A screenshot allegedly identifies Keller in the Rotunda during the U.S. Capitol insurrection. The FBI identified him in part because he was wearing a blue jacket with "USA" on the back, court documents say. U.S. District Court |
"PERSON 1 stands taller than a number of individuals around him and can
clearly be seen as law enforcement officers repeatedly attempt to remove him
and others from the Rotunda," the charging document filed by Special Agent
Matthew Barofsky said.
Investigators said conservative news site Townhall Media posted a video of a
crowd at the Capitol. Then outlets such as SwimSwam, which follows competitive
swimming, said it appeared Keller was in the video, according to the charging
documents.
Federal authorities said they confirmed his identification by comparing
screenshots of Keller with the image from his driver's license from Colorado's
Department of Motor Vehicles.
USA Swimming, the U.S. governing body of competitive swimming, said in a
statement to its membership Wednesday that "while we respect private
individuals' and groups' rights to peacefully protest, we strongly condemned
the unlawful actions taken by those at the Capitol last week."
"It is very simple and very clear," USA Swimming said in the statement shared
with NPR. "Mr. Keller's actions in no way represent the values or mission of
USA Swimming. And while once a swimmer at the highest levels of our sport —
representing the country and democracy he so willfully attacked — Mr. Keller
has not been a member of this organization since 2008."
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| The U.S. men's 4x200-meter freestyle relay team members (from left) Peter Vanderkaay, Keller, Ryan Lochte and Michael Phelps celebrate after winning the gold medal at the World Swimming Championships in Melbourne, Australia, in 2007. Mark Baker/AP |
Keller won five medals during his three Olympic appearances — two gold medals,
one silver and two bronze.
NPR's Emily Bogle contributed to this report.
This article first appeared on npr.org.
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