On July 1, 2021, Louisiana State University gymnastics star Olivia Dunne was in Times Square staring up at a 73-foot-tall version of herself. A video clip that played on the billboard showed the most-followed athlete in college sports starting a flip on a beach on TikTok and transitioned to her sticking a landing in her LSU uniform in the school's arena, her arms lifted triumphantly overhead.
The campaign, which was paid for by LSU and spotlighted other athletes as well, was a victory lap following the NCAA's decision to overturn its 115-year prohibition on student athletes earning money for their name, image, and likeness (NIL). "That was the moment my life changed forever," Olivia tells me as she sips a drink outside a campus Starbucks on a sunny spring day in Baton Rouge.
LSU had taken fourth place at the national championships the weekend before, an impressive showing given the number of injuries the team suffered this season, and she was enjoying a rare moment of downtime, dressed casually in black leggings and a cropped T-shirt, her long blonde hair spilling over her shoulders. If not for the Prada bag slung on the chair behind her, she'd be indistinguishable from the other students passing by. Pausing to reflect on that Times Square moment, she adds, "That was surreal. I didn't really know what was to come, but I knew it was going to be special."
Two years later, Olivia is still the most-followed college athlete in the country, with more than 13 million followers across platforms. |
