She may not be competing at Paris 2024, but fans still went wild when they spotted American artistic gymnast Olivia 'Livvy' Dunne, 21, in the stands at The Olympics.
The athlete-slash-social media megastar surprised followers when she posted from the volleyball arena below the sparkling Eiffel Tower as the games kicked off.
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With over 8 million followers on TikTok and 5.3 million on Instagram, Olivia has a bigger following than most of the athletes in the Olympic village this year.
But who is she, why is she so famous, and how did she end up at The Olympics in 2024? Keep reading to learn more.
What made Livvy Dunne so famous?
With a more than 13 million followers across TikTok and Instagram, Olivia is famous for her athletic career, social media status, and the incredible earnings she's pocketed from both.
Born on October 1, 2002 in New Jersey, USA in 2002, Olivia began gymnastics training when she was just a few years old in 2005.
She took the sport seriously and by the time she was 14, she'd transitioned to being homeschooled in order to spend more time focused on her gymnastics career.
When she was about 16, she made her elite debut as an artistic gymnast at the 2014 American Classic, where she came 28th. The following years she made her National Championships debut and placed 25th.
Olivia worked hard and continued to compete over the next few years, eventually earning a spot on the US National Team for the first time in 2017.
By 2019, she was looking to a future in college gymnastics and signed up to compete in the 2020–21 season with Louisiana State University as a member of the LSU Tigers gymnastics team.
She started with the team in 2020, which also happened to be the year she kicked off her social media career by making an account on TikTok.
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At first she just shared gymnastics videos, but she soon realised she could build a following by sharing more lifestyle content. Within a few years she'd amassed millions of followers.
Then in 2021, the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) changed the rules and agreed to let athletes to earn money from their name, image, and likeness (NIL).
Suddenly, Olivia was allowed to monetise her massive following - and monetise she did.
She signed to a talent management agency, launched her first exclusive brand partnership, and signed deals with brands like Grubhub, Bodyarmor, and American Eagle Outfitters within a matter of months.
Olivia was even photographed for the 2023 and 2024 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issues, which she called a "dream come true".
"It's an honor to be included because I love everything the magazine represents. It is all about supporting women from all different paths," she told SI.
Olivia, who stands at 5 ft 6.25 in (168 cm) tall, is currently ranked among the most successful US college athletes on the uneven bars and beam.
How does Olivia Dunne make money? What's her net worth?
Most of Olivia's incredible earnings come from social media partnerships and brand deals that she's only been allowed to cash in on since the NIL rule change in 2021.
The 21-year-old is the highest-valued women's college athletes in the entire US and is estimated to have an NIL value of US$3.7 million (approx. $5.6 million AUD).
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With such a massive and engaged social media following, Olivia can charge brands an obscene amount of money to work with her.
In fact, in July 2023 she claimed she earned more than US$500,000 (approx. $763,000 AUD) for a single sponsored post on one occasion.
"I'm very fortunate," she said on the Full Send podcast, adding, "It's just crazy to me."
Olivia's personal net worth is said to be in the multi-millions, with reports claiming she's worth anywhere from US$2.3 million to US$6 million (approx. $3.5 million to $9 million AUD).
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How much is Olivia Dunne's NIL deal worth?
In May 2024, Olivia signed a massive first-of-its-kind NIL deal with Passes, a company that helps online influencers like her boost their earnings from their social media content.
"It's a new and unique way for my followers to have access like never before to behind-the-scenes and parts of my journey as an athlete and a creator," Olivia said of the deal, per Sportico.
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Just a few months later, she confirmed she'd be continuing on for a fifth year competing with LSU, where there's still plenty of money to be made.
"Not Dunne yet," she captioned a post announcing her decision.
Who has Livvy Dunne dated?
Olivia is currently dating baseball player Paul Skenes, who is a pitcher for the MLB team the Pittsburgh Pirates and also attended LSU.
The pair took their romance public in 2023, after Olivia sparked relationship rumours when she was spotted in a jersey with his name on it at the College World Series in June.
Skenes confirmed they were an item in an interview the following month, saying that it could be a "pain in the butt" to date another high-profile college athlete.
"If one of us went out in Baton Rouge by ourselves, there's probably gonna be someone there asking for something—picture, autograph, whatever," he told The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Olivia posted her first snap with Skenes on Instagram in November that year and they've been looking loved-up ever since.
Prior to her romance with Skenes, there were rumours that Olivia was involved with fellow LSU alumni Joe Burrow, who now plays in the NFL.
Though they appear friendly and have shared some social media posts together, there's no solid evidence the pair were ever officially an item.
Meet Livvy Dunne's family
Olivia was raised by parents Katherine Dunne and David Dunne alongside her elder sister Julianna 'Julz' Dunne.
The sisters attended the same university and when Olivia's fame exploded, Julz found a way to be part of the action.
As well as running the @forgottensiblings social media account, where she tries to "normalise" her famous little sister, Julz is also a paid employee on Olivia's wider team.
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While some fans speculated that working for your younger sibling would be a recipe for disaster, Olivia and Julz remain incredibly close.
"That is my best friend, so, at the end of the day, that's the relationship that really matters more than the ones from other people online that I don't even know," Julz said on The Purple Room Podcast in February 2023.
What does Livvy Dunne have to do with Baby Gronk?
In 2023, Olivia went viral in a video she didn't even create.
The original clip showed her meeting then-10-year-old football player Madden San Miguel, also known as 'Baby Gronk' online, and giving him a hug. It looked harmless.
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Though it was first uploaded by Miguel's parents, a TikTok user known as h00pify, real name Henry De Tolla, reshared it with his own commentary packed with slang terms like 'rizz' and the new version soon went viral.
"If you don't know what these words mean, it just sounds like I'm speaking gibberish almost," De Tolla told NBC after the video made the rounds online.
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