You can "hardly blame them for wanting to let their hair down, and that's certainly what the U.S. swim team did over the weekend as they celebrated their medal successes," according to the London DAILY MAIL. Eleven-time Olympic champion RYAN LOCHTE was joined by his American teammates and female friends at London's Chinawhite nightclub. Lochte reportedly drank £500 ($780) "bottles of Patron Tequila and magnums of Belvedere vodka." MICHAEL PHELPS was also seen out early Sunday. Team GB's REBECA ADLINGTON was seen "making the most of free drinks in the VIP area of the club" with swimming colleagues ELIZABETH SIMMONDS and Silver Medalist MICHAEL JAMIESON. Also out were many members of the Australian swimming team and South African Gold Medalist CHAD LE CLOS (DAILY MAIL, 8/6). The London GUARDIAN reported in its Shortcuts Blog that "after living monastic lives and being in bed by 8:30pm in some cases, when most let loose their demands are sweetly modest." Rower KATHERINE COPELAND did out the champagne, but it was to wash down, not lobster or steak but fast food. She tweeted: "In an olympic mini with champagne and mcdonalds on the way to the @GBRowingTeam party - doesn't get much better! @SHMH1." In fact after years of nutritionally correct meals the calorific charms of McDonald's seemed impossible for athletes to resist; U.S. swimmer RICKY BERENS was certainly "ecstatic about being able to fill up with junk food." He tweeted: "Finally!!!! The end of season celebration dinner! mcdonalds!! Yes all for me!" (GUARDIAN, 8/6).
