“I’ve been dealing with an avulsion fracture of my patella.” That’s how Olivia Dunne broke the news in early March 2025, and yeah, it was as painful as it sounds. She explained it wasn’t caused by a fall or one bad landing, but by overuse. “Usually, patella fractures are from a direct blow to the knee, but mine is from overuse, which you don’t see very often,” she told People. But for Dunne, this couldn’t have come at a worse time. After all, in the final season of her LSU career, where she wished for a swansong, she instead ended up getting sidelined. But there is a bigger heartbreak than missing the NCAA semis.

What can be more important than the championship, you ask? Well, she missed LSU’s Senior Night meet against Georgia on March 7—her last chance to perform in the PMAC. “It breaks my heart not to be able to compete one last time in the PMAC,” Olivia Dunne said. That moment was supposed to be her senior sendoff in front of the home crowd, and instead, she was cheering from the sidelines. But staying down isn’t her style.

By mid-March, she was already easing back into training and posted a clip of herself on an AlterG Anti-Gravity Treadmill with the caption: “We’re so back, baby.” Fast forward to April, and with NCAA Championships set for April 17–19 in Fort Worth, there was still hope Olivia Dunne might make a surprise comeback, at least on bars. She’d been training again and hinted she could return, but that excitement faded when she opened up to People about how unpredictable her injury was.

“It is such a weird injury,” she admits, adding, “That’s the best way I can describe it. It’s weird. It’s not very common at all.” Turns out, her patella fracture wasn’t caused by a fall or hit—it was from overuse. She mentions, “Usually, patella fractures are from a direct blow to the knee, but mine is from overuse, which you don’t see very often.” The gymnast further continued, “And the only thing I need is time for it to heal… and it feels like it’s been forever.”

Healing from the injury has proven to be challenging and longer than expected. The recovery process for Olivia Dunne has dragged on longer than she initially expected, yet she is now “doing much better.” She considers more time for healing as her one and only essential requirement since recovery began as an endless process. The end of the season brought unfortunate timing as her last season played out.

 “It sucks because it’s the last part of our season, but I am getting better and we’re getting stronger day by day. That’s all I can ask for, honestly.” She continues to push her limits regardless of her return to the starting lineup status. From the beginning, she participated in sports, and she has experienced multiple times of injury, which made her make a harsh decision.

Injuries crushed Olivia Dunne’s Olympic dream

By the beginning of 2019, Olivia Dunne had already proven herself as an advanced gymnastics competitor. At 15 or 16 years old, Olivia Dunne suffered an extensive ankle injury, which led to her permanent departure from competitive gymnastics. “That dream has died. I got hurt when I think I was about 15-16 years old; the bone had died in my ankle, and it fractured, so I kind of realized this is not for me anymore.” 

An ankle injury made her put Olympic dreams aside while she needed to care for her health. Instead of giving up, Olivia redirected her gymnastics path to collegiate competition at LSU for a fresh athletic start. By 2021, Olivia had already begun to shine at LSU. During her first year, she earned a notable 9.875 on uneven bars against NCAA competition in 2021.

Her contributions led LSU to its first NCAA Championship in 2024, which established the team as a historic force in college athletics. Through her NCAA career at LSU, Olivia led her team to win SEC Championships in both 2024 and 2025 while earning All-American distinctions and becoming recognized as a prime gymnastic presence in the NCAA.

Off the mat, through Name Image Likeness (NIL) deals, Olivia Dunne has accumulated 13.5 million social media followers, which makes her one of the most financially successful college athletes. Well, now Olivia remains in good spirits about her healing after a 2025 patella avulsion fracture, which developed from overuse. Her resilience inspires people because she maintains a positive outlook towards recovery while staying focused on building her strength each day.