Olympian Ryan Lochte Files Trademark Application for “Jeah!”
Orange County – With the recent run of athletes registering trademarks for catch phrases, Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte decided he would also dip a toe in the water. According to the United States Patent and Trademark Office, Lochte has recently filed a trademark application for his catchphrase “Jeah!”. Lochte claims he coined the term ‘Jeah’ after listening to rapper Young Jeezy, who often uses the word ‘Cheah’ in his songs. After trading a “j” for the “ch”, Lochte says that the nonsensical word means “good or happy” to him. The swimmer hopes to use the phrase on sunglasses, clothing, jewelry, DVDs, key chains, trading cards, calendars, hats, posters, mugs, water bottles, swimsuits, swim goggles and swim caps. Lochte already sells the phrase on t-shirts, sunglasses and hats.
Lochte’s road to trademark protection might not be as easy as his path to the Olympic medal podium though. Nineties rap star MC Eiht claims he coined the phrase long before Lochte. Eiht says he plans to send a cease and desist letter to Lochte demanding that he stop using the phrase. However, Lochte’s manager claims that Ryan has been using JEAH for years and this is the first they have heard of any claims by MC Eiht.
Ryan Lochte was born in Rochester New York and is an eleven-time Olympic medalist in swimming. His events are backstroke, freestyle and medley. He is best known for the speed and distance he attains while kicking underwater and his dominance in short course formats. After the 2012 Olympics, he ranks second all-time in men’s swimming and holds the world record in the 4×200-meter freestyle relay. He currently holds the world record in the 200-meter individual medley and the 400-meter individual medley. Lochte was also named World Swimmer of the Year and the American Swimmer of the Year twice, as well as FINA Swimmer of the Year twice. Lochte plans to swim in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, but is considering exploring new events. Lochte has recently been moving into other endeavors such as workout videos, possible book deals and a fashion line.
