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The gymnast who "sells sex" complains: "It's not my fault that men objectify me" - voila! sport

2023-01-21T22:19:18.010Z


Olivia Dunn, a 20-year-old student who earns millions of dollars a year thanks to popularity on social media, has drawn criticism in the sports world for taking women's sports "backwards"


American gymnast Olivia Dunne (@livvydunne)

Olivia Dunn is a young gymnast who only competes in college tournaments, but she is already one of the most famous athletes in the country, earning millions of dollars a year.

However, now the TikTok star is revealing the difficulty she faces following the "worrying" attention she receives from men - and revealed the police had to intervene in one particularly disturbing incident.



The athlete has more than 6.8 million followers on TikTok and 3.1 million on Instagram, but opened up about the darker side of her online fame on the "Today" show, just days after her coach revealed he hired a bodyguard to protect her from loud young fans who follow her.



"They gave us some new rules, just to keep us safe: no going into the stands after meets, and we have a new security guy traveling with us," Dunn explained.



The last incident involving her "rude" fans was when they "ambushed" her, and she had to report it to the police.

It was not published what exactly happened, but Dunn expressed concern and fear about the "threatening" reactions she receives on social media, and explained: "There are some people who occasionally do reach out, which is a little worrying."

"A little worrying."

Dunn (Photo: GettyImages)

Enthusiastic young people: this is what "Libi" fans look like

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She brings in millions of dollars a year from her social media accounts, which include videos of herself dancing and posing in bikinis, among other things, but insists that doesn't legitimize the negative attention.

"As a woman, you are not responsible for the way a man looks at you and spreads you. This is not a woman's responsibility," she says.



Now, as mentioned, she is forced to adapt to new security laws.

"Social media is changing everything," Olivia Dunn's LSU coach Jay Clark said.

"It creates a false sense of accessibility and familiarity, which makes followers feel as if they have a personal connection with her."



Recently, a number of rather embarrassing videos were published, of thousands of enthusiastic young fans waiting for her outside the competitions.

"I've had a lot of fans waiting for me watching the game and cheering for LSU before, but that time it was crazy. It really was," Dunn said of the disturbing incident.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Olivia Dunne (@livvydunne)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Olivia Dunne (@livvydunne)

Dunn, 20, is a gymnast on the Louisiana State University women's team.

She did not record particularly impressive achievements, did not win any prestigious international championships, yet she is one of the most talked about athletes in the US in recent times: Dunn, only 20 years old, has already become a millionaire, and has sparked a discussion about women's sports, including an article in the "New York Times" Its title is "The new advertising contracts for college athletes flood old worries - the sex is familiar".



Dunn, a slim and beautiful blonde, manages to earn the big sums thanks to new rules that went into effect in 2021 that allow college athletes to sign sponsorship deals and earn money. Dunn did not give details She is not precise about her earnings, but it is estimated that last year she made $2.5 million, and next year the amount will increase. "Seven figures," she said, when asked about her income. "That is something I am proud of.

Especially since I'm a woman in college sports."

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Olivia Dunne (@livvydunne)

The huge sums that the slender gymnast brings in are thanks to advertising to her millions of followers on social networks - on Instagram and TikTok, platforms where she combines sponsored content when she models American Eagle Outfitters jeans and Vuori clothing with videos of herself singing popular songs or performing trendy dances.



For Dunn, and many other athletes of her generation, the use of videos with a sexual connotation is not only a legitimate way of self-promotion - but also empowering.

"It's just about showing as much of yourself as you want, as much or as little," Dunn said of her online persona.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Olivia Dunne (@livvydunne)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Olivia Dunne (@livvydunne)

The rules that allow college athletes to earn have significantly changed the fate of college women, especially those who compete in non-revenue sports such as gymnastics.

Male athletes in a popular sport like football manage to earn significant sums thanks to the great success of the game.

Women benefit mainly due to their personal success in social networks.

The reality shows that many manage to get the income thanks to popularity that stems from sexuality - and not from sporting success or achievements.



The New York Times quotes Andrea Guarin, a sports business researcher at Loughborough University in England, who studied female athletes trying to reach the Rio Olympics in 2016, many of them from colleges.

"One of the big themes that came out was the pressure they felt to post sexual images of themselves on social media," Gyorin said.



She noted that some female athletes decided it wasn't worth posting such photos to the public while others found it one of the main ways to increase their online popularity and earning power.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Olivia Dunne (@livvydunne)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Olivia Dunne (@livvydunne)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Olivia Dunne (@livvydunne)

"Anyone who examines the posts on the social network of female college athletes across the United States will discover a clear trend: familiar sex," the New York Times wrote, "the market backs it up."

Tara Vanderveer, the famous Stanford coach, claims that technology and progress perpetuate old sexist perceptions: "We fight for all the opportunities to compete, to play, to get budgets, to have facilities, all the things that accompany senior athletes... but it's a step backwards."

  • sport

  • trash talk

Tags

  • trash talk

  • Gymnastics

Source: walla

All sports articles on 2023-01-21

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