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Olivia Dunne Shares Sweetest Throwback Pic From Toddler Gymnastics Days

The star LSU athlete was the most adorable little gymnast.

Ananya Panchal

Olivia Dunne

Olivia Dunne.

Olivia Dunne began gymnastics at the age of 3, and today, the 21-year-old is now the highest-paid female college athlete in the country. However, it hasn’t been all smooth sailing getting to the top.

The 2023 SI Swimsuit model, who was photographed by Ben Watts in Puerto Rico earlier this year, joined the U.S. national gymnastics team when she was in her early teenage years, and while it certainly was an “honor,” it wasn’t the best fit. She took a different path instead: a full-ride scholarship to LSU and a successful (seven figure) living as a college athlete.

The New Jersey native has racked up a social media following of 4.4 million followers on Instagram and 7.8 million on TikTok. She’s constantly sharing career and life updates like getting a dog, turning 21, being featured in Forbes’s 2023 Top Creators List, as well as offering up gymnastics training videos and relatable college student content.

Her most recent TikTok has got us in our feels, thinking about how little Livvy (as her followers know her) would be so proud of her adult self. The model shared a trio of photos with the sweetest message.

“I can’t fail her,” she wrote on top of a recent HD competition day photo. Dunne wore a bedazzled high-neck purple leotard and struck a pose.

“Fail who?” read the next slide, a recent snapshot of Dunne taping and adding chalk to her palms and wrists.

“Her,” she wrote on the final snap, an adorable baby photo of young Dunne in the gym wearing a bright pink velvet leotard, smiling bright and holding a trophy straight in the air.

“doin it for her:) #foryou #lsu #gymnastics,” she captioned the Oct. 23 slideshow.

“You’ve come so far. You’ve inspired me since I was just a little girl,” one fan commented.

“I just quit tumbling it was my 9th year it’s so hard to think that I’m done. U just give me so much motivation. I LOVE U,” another chimed.

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Ananya Panchal
ANANYA PANCHAL

Ananya Panchal is a writer on the Lifestyle and Trending News team for SI Swimsuit, where she covers fashion, beauty, pop culture and the internet’s favorite personalities and trends. She joined the brand in 2022 after roles at Bustle, the San Francisco Chronicle and the TODAY Show. Panchal loves to write about fashion in all its forms—from standout runway moments and evolving street style to the best accessories to elevate each season’s wardrobe (she rarely goes anywhere without a stack of jewelry and a coffee in hand). A self-proclaimed beauty fanatic, she’s always on the hunt for must-have products and loves breaking down viral trends. Her favorite series at the moment is spotlighting female founders and the stories behind the brands they’ve built—especially those shaping the future of fashion, wellness and tech. She is based between New York City and San Francisco and, when she’s not writing, can be found rewatching One Tree Hill, playing sudoku, trying new restaurants or ranking her favorite Disney Channel Original Movies. She holds a bachelor’s degree in communications and journalism with a minor in criminal justice from Boston University.

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