Ryan Lochte Just Addressed Claims His Alleged Mistress ‘Took’ Him ‘Away’ From His Ex-Wife After Reports of ‘Multiple Instances of Infidelity’
Jason Pham
Ryan Lochte and Kayla Rae Reid’s divorce is getting messier and messier. The Olympic swimmer and former Playboy model married in 2018 and went on to welcome three children together—son Caiden in 2017, daughter Liv in 2019, and daughter Georgia in 2023—before Reid filed for divorce from Lochte in 2025.
“Earlier this year, I made the hard decision to end my marriage after deep prayer and reflection,” Reid wrote in an Instagram post in June 2025. “I hold marriage in the highest regard, so this has been one of the most painful, revealing, and challenging seasons of my life. I’ve been hesitant to share until I could do so from a place of healing — not from fresh, open wounds.”
She continued, “Sometimes we face trials we didn’t choose or see coming. And in those moments, we’re forced to make the hardest decisions to protect our peace, our children, and our future. I’ve come to the understanding that staying isn’t always the most loving decision someone can make. For me, leaving was an act of love — for those around me and for myself.”
Court records showed that Reid filed for divorce in March 2025. So what went wrong?
Why did Ryan Lochte and Kayla Rae Reid divorce?
A source told Us Weekly in July 2025 that Reid filed for divorce from Lochte due to “trust issues” in their marriage. “There were trust issues on Kayla’s end,” the source said. “Ryan betrayed Kayla’s trust in numerous ways.” The source explained that Reid “stuck it out as long as possible for the sake” of her and Lochte’s kids—son Caiden and daughters Liv and Georgia—”but there are only so many times you can repeat the cycle before you have to be selfish and do what’s best for you and your family.”
In the end, a second source claimed that Lochte and Reid’s relationship was “irreparable.” “He shattered her heart,” the insider said. The second source added that Reid is “heartbroken” but “in a good headspace” since she left Lochte. “She feels she’s getting her independence back and is picking up the pieces,” the insider said. “She knows she will be able to move forward on her own and is being strong in front of their kids.”
A source for People also credited trust issues as the reason for Lochte and Reid’s split in June 2025. “He’s damaged so much of their marriage and he’s broken her heart so many times that she doesn’t know if reconciliation is in their future,” the insider said.
The source also claimed that there were multiple instances of infidelity. “[Kayla kept] all of this under wraps,” the insider said. “[She was used to] protecting him for so long and protecting their marriage. She never, ever wanted this.”
The insider explained that Reid filing for divorce was also for Lochte’s benefit. “It just got so bad that she actually felt like by leaving he’ll have to be court-mandated to get help, essentially. And that’s all she wants,” the source said. “[It] is for him to be healthy and him to be well.”
Lochte, for his part, denied rumors that he cheated on Reid with his new girlfriend, Molly Gillihan, in a statement to the Daily Mail. “I want people to understand that Molly didn’t take me away from my ex-wife,” he said. “She didn’t take me away from my kids. We got a divorce and I left. I moved down the street because I wanted to be in my kids’ lives and I will always be in my kids’ lives.”
He also claimed that he and Gillihan didn’t start dating until after Reid filed for divorce. “’There was no infidelity with Molly, like nothing,” Lochte said. “Molly didn’t do anything wrong. She didn’t pursue me, I pursued her. It was after I got served with the divorce papers. I was out of the house and living by myself. It was all after the fact.” He continued, “Kayla has blocked me on social media. She’s the one that wanted this divorce in the first place and now she’s playing this pity party.”
Lochte alleged that he and Reid had had “complications for a long time” well before she filed for divorce. “What people don’t really realize is that me and my ex haven’t really been together for a very long time,” he said. “Basically, since my littlest girl was born, which was around two years ago.” (Reid and Lochte’s youngest daughter, Georgia, was born in June 2023.)
Gillihan, for her part, also told the Daily Mail that she’s “extremely happy” in her relationship with Lochte. “He pursued me some time after Kayla served him with divorce papers and he was living on his own,” she said.
She added that she was “attracted” to Lochte because of how good of a father he was, while admitting that she didn’t know much about his swimming career. “I do not know much about his history in swimming but when I saw how he was with his kiddos I decided to give him a chance,” she said.
