Paige Spiranac defends ‘bad***’ LSU gymnast Olivia Dunne and hits back at ‘belittling’ of women
PROFESSIONAL golfer Paige Spiranac has publically defended college gymnast and entrepreneur Oliva Dunne amidst a rain of internet hate.
Spiranac, 29, tweeted in support of Dunne, 20, and her name, image, and likeness deals that have earned her millions yearly as an athlete at the collegiate level.
"I’m so sick of women belittling accomplishments of other women because it’s done differently than they would. @livvydunne is getting hate for making 2 million a year," Friday on Twitter.
She continued: "She’s built a successful business (at 20) all while being a student-athlete. That’s badass.”
The tweets come as a response to a New York Times story published November 8, 2022.
In the article, the stated that a new 2021 ruling allowed the athlete to collect money on NIL deals, which have been speculated to net Dunne a $2million salary.
Overall, the article highlighted the concern of money going to collegiate female athletes via NIL deals, saying that it throws a wrench in the integrity of women's training and competition by "(rewarding) traditional feminine desirability over athletic excellence.”
Stanford Women's basketball coach Tara VanDerveer spoke in the Times piece, which said her opinion on the NIL deals is that they are "regressive."
She said: "I guess sometimes we have this swinging pendulum, where we maybe take two steps forward, and then we take a step back.
"We’re fighting for all the opportunities to compete, to play, to have resources, to have facilities, to have coaches, and all the things that go with Olympic-caliber athletics. This is a step back."
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The Times went on to chastise the NIL practices for their race and sexual preferences, shouting out that the most successful NIL moneymakers are white, posting scantily-clad photos that "seem to cater to the male gaze,"
Very few of these "top-earners" openly identify as queer.
Still, Dunne and Spiranac have both been top performers in their athletic craft regardless of their outside deals.
Spiranac played golf at both the University of Arizona and San Diego State, competing professionally on the famous Cactus Tour, the reported.
Dunne made all-American as a first-year gymnast at Louisiana State University.
As a sophomore, she made her way onto the Southeastern Conference’s honor roll for work in interdisciplinary studies, according to the Times.
She fired back at the outlet for their criticism of her business choices, posting one of her classic photos on her Instagram story, tagging the times, and captioning the picture, "Is this too much?"