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Klete Keller, a champion swimmer who won two Olympic gold medals as Michael Phelps’ relay teammate, has been identified by former teammates and coaches as a member of the crowd who broke into the U.S. Capitol during violent demonstrations on Wednesday.
A video Posted by a journalist at Tory media outlet Townhall appeared to show the 6ft 6in Keller towering over a pushing and shoving crowd with police officers attempting to clear the Capitol rotunda.
Several former teammates and coaches said they recognized Keller in the video because of his height and wearing a US Olympic team jacket that had “USA” printed on the back and sleeves.
A covering green face, which might have obscured his identity, hung loosely around his neck, leaving his bearded face clearly visible.
A swimming news site SwimSwam first reported Keller’s presence during the Capitol riot on Monday. The video has been circulating in the swimming community since last week, and several people who saw it reportedly reported Keller to authorities.
Efforts to reach Keller failed.
On Tuesday evening, the Colorado real estate company which had employed him for three years, Hoff & Leigh, announced that he had resigned “with immediate effect”.
“Hoff & Leigh supports the right to free speech and legal protest, but we cannot tolerate actions that violate the rule of law,” the company said in a brief statement.
Few of the people who recognized Keller in the video have expressed surprise at his presence in Washington. His deleted social media accounts, several of them said, had in recent years included a stream of pro-Trump messages.
No video has emerged of Keller participating in acts of violence on the Capitol, but his mere presence in the building, if confirmed by authorities, may have put him in legal danger. Many people who entered the building now face federal charges, including illegal entry and disorderly conduct. The most serious charges include theft of government property and firearm violations.
Keller, 38, was a member of three US Olympic teams and he won medals at three Olympics, including gold at the Athens Games in 2004 and the Beijing Games in 2008 as a member of the 4×200 meter relay team. He won silver in the event at the 2000 Sydney Games.
Powerful freestyler, Keller produced his signing moment in 2004 in Athens. Days after winning a second straight bronze in the 400-meter freestyle, Keller took revenge by fending off gold medalist Ian Thorpe of Australia on the anchor stage of the final of the relay. Phelps swam the first leg of the US team, which included Ryan Lochte and Peter Vanderkaay.
Keller had worked for the past few years as a real estate broker in Colorado Springs. His agency, Hoff & Leigh, confirmed he was employed there when contacted by SwimSwam on Monday, but on Monday evening the company had removed his profile and almost all references to him from its website. His statement announcing his departure made it clear that he had been hired as an independent contractor.
A cached version of his Hoff & Leigh contact page, however, included a biography describing Keller as an associate broker with three years of real estate experience. His career as an elite athlete, the company said, had made him “extremely motivated.”
A call to a Keller cell phone number listed on the website returned a message that it was not available.
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