Is Ryan Lochte Dating Miss USA Olivia Culpo?

by uInterviewSeptember 12, 2012, 12:00 amNews >

Five-time Olympic gold medalist Ryan Lochte, 28, was seen with Miss USA 2012 Olivia Culpo, 20, last Friday at the Evening Sherri Hill Spring 2013 fashion show at New York Fashion Week. The duo posed for pictures at the event and then went to the high-profile nightclub 1 Oak, where they casually talked.

Lochte and Culpo met at the beginning of Fashion Week during a party at the Four Seasons restaurant hosted by shoe designer Brian Atwood, according to the New York Daily News. But Culpo hasn't indicated that her appearance with Lochte amounts to anything other than a friendly meeting.

“We just met last week, so I can’t say anything for that, but he’s a good guy,” Culpo said.

Lochte has become a staple on the celebrity circuit, capitalizing on his new global fame by popping up at high-profile events and television appearances. Earlier in the summer he made a pit stop in Prince Harry’s infamous Las Vegas trip, and the two had a swim-off. Lochte has also booked cameo appearances on 90210 and 30 Rock, and may be in line for his own reality show on E!, as well.

Culpo, meanwhile, was just crowned Miss USA in June. The Rhode Island native is a student at Boston University as well as a world-class cellist who has earned seats in the Boston Symphony Hall and Carnegie Hall. She is taking the year off from school to fulfill her Miss USA duties, which include her living in New York and being a spokesperson for breast and ovarian cancer. In December, she will compete for Miss Universe 2012, a title currently held by Leila Lopes of Angola.

It remains to be seen whether sparks will fly between Lochte and Culpo, especially after the swimmer recently admitted during Fashion Week that he is hung up on a married woman. "I have a huge crush on Blake Lively. She's drop-dead gorgeous," Lochte told People. Of course, Lively, 25, recently married Ryan Reynolds, 35, so now may be the perfect time for Lochte to more on, perhaps setting his sights on the current Miss USA. –Hal Sundt