TikTok star Olivia Dunne says people thought she was a 'full-time beach flipper' when she got to LSU and were shocked that she was an actual gymnast

• LSU gymnast Olivia Dunne is one of the biggest stars in college sports.
• Dunne sports more than 11 million followers across TikTok and Instagram.
• When she arrived at LSU, Dunne says classmates didn't realize she was an actual gymnast, not just an influencer.

There aren't a lot of college athletes as famous as LSU gymnast Olivia Dunne.

With 7.3 million followers on TikTok and another 3.7 million followers on Instagram, Dunne has built an impressive social media empire, and thanks to new rules surrounding the Name, Image, and Likeness rights of college athletes, she's able to cash in on branding opportunities unavailable to previous generations. 

The building of Dunne's brand didn't happen overnight, but rather in stages, and in some cases, her fans and followers were unaware of the fact that she was — and is — an elite gymnast, in addition to her role as a social media personality.

Dunne spoke about her longtime interest in social media while appearing as a guest on the podcast "Twin Talk," hosted by fellow college athletes and influencers Haley and Hanna Cavinder, twins that play for Miami's women's basketball team.

"It started honestly when I was around 10 years old when I downloaded Instagram," Dunne explained. "I know that sounds really far back, but I've always loved social media stuff. I did Elite Gymnastics growing up, so I accumulated a following for gymnastics first. I'd say I got about 100,000 followers on Instagram through just gymnastics, and I hadn't even started TikTok yet."

But Dunne's following exploded once she stepped into TikTok during the pandemic.

"Then COVID rolled around, and I started posting myself flipping around at the beach in a bikini, and I got a following," Dunne said.

"I came to LSU right after COVID and most people didn't even know I actually did gymnastics. People thought I was just a full-time beach flipper. People had no clue I actually did college sports."

While some followers took a minute to connect Dunne's beach-flipping self and her career as a competitive gymnast, in the long run, having fans from both facets of her following has paid off.

"I've always had a passion for social media," Dunne told the Cavinder twins. "I felt like I had a jump-start to NIL."

According to some measures, Dunne's NIL valuation could be worth upwards of $2 million.