SINGAPORE - Online advertisements have been misusing the image and name of Singapore swimmer Joseph Schooling, said the Olympic gold medallist's agent and manager Ronda Ng Doswell on Saturday (Oct 20).

The ads on Facebook have headlines such as "Schooling Reveals His Genius Wealth Strategies" and "What Schooling Is Doing With All His Wealth", as seen in screenshots sent to The Straits Times by Ms Ng Doswell.

A police report has been made and there are plans to contact Facebook about this, she added.

The Schooling Company, which owns the 23-year-old swimmer's branding and image rights, said in a statement on Saturday that the advertisements are not endorsed by Schooling.

"He has never spoken to these websites or 'reporters'. This is false representation and a misuse of Joseph's image and name," said the statement.

Ms Ng Doswell said she found out about the issue on Friday when screenshots of the ads were sent to her.

However, she is unsure if there are such advertisements circulating outside of the social media platform and is not aware if there have been any victims of the false advertisements.

Ms Ng Doswell said that the ads may only be seen by whoever the scammers wish to target, and she has received only screenshots of them. ST could not find the ads online.

Schooling, who won the 100m butterfly gold at the Rio 2016 Olympics, represents a few brands as an ambassador. Among these are local bank DBS, men's fashion label Hugo Boss, probiotic drink Yakult and imaging and optical products manufacturer Canon.