Olivia Dunne Opens Up About How It Feels to Watch Gymnastics Footage After Retirement

The athlete and content creator got candid about her past in the sport on social media this week.

Olivia Dunne / John Nacion/Getty Images

Olivia Dunne is opening up how it feels to watch her old practice footage as a retired gymnast.

The 23-year-old began her gymnastics journey at just three years old, pursuing the sport through her teen years with a stint on the USA national team in 2017 before attending Louisiana State University and joining the Tigers in 2020. There, the athlete helped her team take home their first NCAA women’s gymnastics championship in 2024. After five seasons on the squad, Dunne announced her official retirement from the sport back in April of this year, sharing a moving video to commemorate her time on the mat.

And this week, Dunne posted to Instagram to let her 5.3 million followers know what it feels like to look back on her gymnastic days—while also admitting that even she’s amazed by what her body could do.

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A look back

In the throwback video taken during her time at LSU—which the athlete candidly captioned “Like how tf did I do that”—Dunne shared two separate practice clips.

In the first clip, she repped LSU’s colors with a bright yellow tank and vibrant purple shorts. She took a running start before hitting an intense, intricate move, finishing on a high-flying flip. In the second clip, she wore a casual gray tank and fitted shorts, performing a similarly striking feat and sticking the landing with ease.

“watching videos of what my body was capable of a year ago like it’s my dead wife,” text written over the video clip read, displaying Dunne’s signature tongue-in-cheek humor.

You can also watch Dunne’s video on TikTok here.

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Fans react (and Dunne reveals an exciting development)

Naturally, fans of the athlete were ready to reminisce along with her, taking to her comment sections on both Instagram and TikTok to share their love, praise and support for the athlete—and also, to share one very specific request:

“No one can do gymnastics like you do,” a fan penned on Instagram. “You’re phenomenal and are always unique with all of your talents.”

“You’re amazing! 👏🔥😮🤩❤️,” another echoed.

“I did this last week but the cameras were off,” one fan quipped on TikTok. Dunne then responded, joking, “Me too lowkey.”

“Clean 👏👏,” Dancing With the Stars pro Sasha Farber applauded.

And hey, speaking of Dancing With the Stars...

“U NEED TO GO ON DWTS,” another fan proclaimed. Dunne also responded here, coyly commenting, “They did just ask 👀…”

Whether or not Dunne will follow in fellow gymnast and Season 34 third-place contestant Jordan Chiles’s footsteps by taking a spin around the ballroom floor in the future remains to be seen. Still, her fans are definitely fond of the idea and excited to see what the athlete does in the future (and this statement very much includes us)!

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