A national gymnastics championship might not have been enough. Last season, Olivia Dunne’s presence in the LSU Tigers paved the way for the team to keep its hands on the coveted trophy. Although her presence had been limited because of her injury, the 21-year-old displayed on the uneven bars what she was capable of. And yet, criticism followed. The voices blamed her NIL fame to be the sole factor in making her a part of the Tigers’ squad. And who does not know that with Olivia Dunne, there come millions of eyes as the supporter? So, the critics belittled Livvy’s gymnastics part, magnifying the off-court subjects. But here comes a break. 

Among the Olympic gymnastics greats, someone has now taken over the mic, but for a different cause. She has found no breach in Olivia’s effort to match up with both gymnastics and NIL deals. 

Olivia Dunne finds a firm voice beside her in the dark tunnel 

On September 14, Dominique Moceanu took on X to share her thoughts on Olivia Dunne’s representation in the docuseries, The Money Game Season 1. And she was full of praise for the New Jersey-born. In her detailed post for Livvy, Moceanu congratulated the former for ‘sharing both of her vulnerability & genuine sensitivities.’ Notably, the Amazon Prime-hosted docuseries has featured both elements by narrating Olivia’s gymnastics journey with the LSU Tigers and her signing the brand deals in 2021. Therefore, through watching the series, the youngest American gymnastic Olympian got to know about the intricacies Livvy had been going through in her tenure. Now, Moceanu knows the insider stories. 

That feeling of knowing the reality made her write, “Wishing you continued prosperity in the ever-evolving world of NIL & beyond.” That might act as fresh air for Olivia Dunne, who is habituated to seeing continuous flak from a segment of netizens. Even that unfair treatment bludgeoned her to a level where she could say, “People don’t really want to listen because they obviously are just haters.” But the docuseries has been able to shed light on a few things. Ultimately, Olivia Dunne has been able to show that her multimillion NIL deals never came easily. On that subject, she had a few words saved. 

The deals follow the superior show in sports 

Currently, with $4 million in the purse, Olivia Dunne sits at the second-top position in the NIL list of NCAA athletes. She is the only gymnast and woman in that top 10. Don’t such elements make her special among the current crop of gymnasts at the college level? Now, when she is breaking her knuckles to go for an added year, competing with the LSU Tigers, everyone is expecting a few more numbers to be added to that list. But it’s not that easy. 

In her interaction, Livvy explained, “It’s so fascinating with sports. With music or movies, there’s no denying that if someone’s uncle is the producer or something, it’s easier for them to get in the door. But with sports, you still have to do it! You still have to go out there and do gymnastics. You can’t fake that. Right, yeah.” Only with eye-catching performances can the number of deals be increased. With gymnastics, things can be tougher in times because it has to be “beautiful and seamless.” This validates Dominique Moceanu’s words for Olivia Dunne. At least she knows what it takes to be prominent in gymnastics!