Olivia Dunne makes her feelings known for freshman Kailin Chio after her debut for LSU Tigers

Olivia Dunne shared her thoughts on freshman Kailin Chio’s debut for the LSU Tigers against Iowa State. Chio delivered an impressive performance by registering the school’s highest debut score by a freshman with 39.575 points on her first appearance, with 9.825 on vault, 9.900 on uneven bars, 9.925 on beam and 9.925 on floor exercise.

Without the reigning NCAA all-around champion Haleigh Bryant, Chio made a strong statement on her NCAA gymnastics first appearance. This contributed to the Tigers' victory in their first meet of the season, with an overall score of 197.300 to Iowa State’s 194.100.

During a press conference ahead of LSU’s away meet at the Sprouts Farmers Market Collegiate Quad on January 11, the graduate student was asked about her thoughts on freshman Kailin Chio’s performance. Dunne spoke highly of the 18-year-old, saying (5:26 onwards):

“Kailin (Chio) is incredible. I think that she came in with such a great mindset. She competes like a vet and I really admire the way that she trained all preseason. It was just so admirable even from a fifth-year senior's perspective.”

LSU Gymnastics also posted a glimpse of her uneven bars routine on their Instagram page during her debut, in which she scored 9.900 points.

Dunne was impressed by the routine, commenting:

“🔥”

Screenshot of Dunne’s comment. Credits - IG/ @lsugym

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Olivia Dunne shares her thoughts on being seen as just a ‘social media influencer’ instead of gymnast & entrepreneur

Olivia Dunne during meet against the Florida Gators in 2024 (Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images)

Olivia Dunne expressed her thoughts on being noticed just as a social media influencer and not for her gymnastics and entrepreneurial efforts. In an interview with Flaunt.com in October 2024, she shared her frustration with people’s perception of her, adding:

“It definitely is frustrating at times. The worst part is that people think gymnastics is easy when it’s not. The job is to make it look beautiful and easy. You’re not doing it right if it looks hard... The social media aspect of it - I worked really hard to get to where I am in building my personal brand, and it didn’t happen in the blink of an eye.”

She further added:

“It didn’t happen in just a year. It didn’t happen because of one viral moment. It happened over years of getting to know my audience, learning the algorithms, and growing my brand to be what it is today.”

Besides being an integral member of the LSU Tigers gymnastics team, Olivia Dunne is the founder of ‘The Livvy Fund’, which helps athletes from the university to grab opportunities through Name, Image, Likeness (NIL).