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Olivia Dunne recently testified during the House v. NCAA NIL Antitrust Settlement, voicing her objection to the $ 2.8 billion NCAA NIL dispute. Dunne is one of the highest-paid collegiate athletes and currently stands in fourth place behind football players Arch Manning, and Carson Beck, and basketball player Cooper Flagg.
The LSU gymnast's endorsements at $4.1 million as of March make her the highest-earning athlete in NCAA women’s athletics. Dunne committed to the Tigers squad in 2017 while the Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) Interim rules were put into effect in 2021. During her testimony on Monday before Judge Claudia Wilken of the U.S. District Court, Dunne stated that the NCAA rules prevented athletes like herself from capitalizing on the opportunities before the 2021 changes.
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The fifth-year LSU gymnast claimed that she was already successful before joining the program and boasted a huge social media following before she even started competing at the collegiate circuit. In her statement delivered over Zoom, Dunne highlighted that the amount fixed for the settlement does not compensate for the loss NIL opportunities could have paid the athletes.
The social media star also took a swipe at the lack of access to important data which makes it difficult for the collegiate-athletes to calculate their loss.
"The NIL opportunities I worked for have been delayed by NCAA rule. And this settlement doesn’t come close to recognizing the value I lost or the value that so many athletes like me were denied," read Dunne's statement.
The House v. NCAA NIL Antitrust class action lawsuit was filed by Arizona State swimmer Grant House and women's college basketball player Sedona Prince, who claimed damages from the NCAA for college athletes who were not able to earn from their NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness). The NCAA chose to settle as they would have been liable to pay a much higher sum had they lost. The current settlement of $2.8 billion is for back payments that need to be made to collegiate athletes who competed between 2016 and 2024. It also includes a revenue-sharing plan that allows schools to directly make NIL payments to their athletes.
Olivia Dunne reveals the reason for the shift in her goal from Olympics to collegiate gymnastics
In a recent interview with GQ.com, Olivia Dunne revealed the reason for her shift in goals from the Olympics to collegiate gymnastics. As a young gymnast, Dunne made sacrifices, including opting for homeschooling. However, after suffering from multiple injuries that affected her physical health, the gymnast realized she could still attain her goals by competing at the collegiate circuit.
“I wanted to go to the Olympics, compete for the USA, and make the USA National Team and wear the USA gear and just go to different countries and stuff,” she said. “I figured that would be cool.”
“It was cool to me that people got to travel and be on TV and do all these cool things when it came to the Olympics. But I was like, I wonder if I can still do cool things like that but not have to go to the Olympics to attain those goals and those cool things," Olivia Dunne added.
After contributing to LSU gymnastics' historic win last year, Olivia Dunne opted for fifth-year eligibility.
