Who knows if anyone would have capitalized on it, but Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte wants to own the catchphrase he created.
Lochte trademarked the phrase "Jeah" on Aug. 1, according to a filing with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office. The filing reveals that Lochte hopes to put the word on everything from goggles to sunglasses to jewelry and beer mugs. The swimmer, who won two golds and two bronze medals in the 2012 Olympic Games, said his term is a modification of "Chea," a word rapper Young Jeezy frequently uses.
"It means, like, almost everything," Lochte said, in a 2009 video posted on YouTube. "Like happy. Like, if you have a good swim, you say, 'Jeah!' "
The video was posted by TMZ, which was the first to report news of the recent filing.
Darren Rovell is ESPN's sports business insider.