In the race to become number one, sometimes Ryan Lochte had to go number one in a less-than-ideal place: the pool!
The breakout swimming star of the London Games -- who turned 28 on Thursday -- admitted to Ryan Seacrest that he’s urinated in the pools during the Olympics.

“Of course,” Lochte told Seacrest. “I think there’s just something about getting into chlorine water that you just automatically go. [I didn’t] during the races, but I sure did in warm-up.”

Lochte dispelled one major misunderstanding to Us Weekly about his dating life on Friday. After his mother, Ike Lochte, was quoted as saying her son “goes out on one-night stands,” the gold medal winner clarified: “They took it out of context. My mom is really new to all of this and the media. . . She meant since the last 4 years I just wanted to focus on swimming, and I didn’t really have time for a relationship.”

Now that his part of the Games are over?
“I am relieved,” he told Seacrest. “These past fours years have been really, really hard and you know what? It’s over for me, so I’m definitely excited and happy that I get to finally take a deep breath.”

His pal and so-called rival Michael Phelps ended the Games and his Olympics career on a high note Saturday -- winning his 18th gold medal and 22nd overall medal.

“Michael Phelps is one of the hardest competitors I have ever had to go up against and you know what? He’s a good friend” Lochte said. “Win or lose we’re still going to be friends and we both want to win and sometimes you do and sometimes you don’t.”