Gymnast Olivia Dunne Makes Her 'SI Swimsuit' Debut: 'I Can Be Strong and Sexy' (Exclusive)
Dunne tells PEOPLE she "cried" after learning she'd become one of the first female college athlete to be featured in print for the iconic spread
Olivia Dunne wants to have it all.
As the 20-year-old gymnast shines in this month's Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, Dunne tells PEOPLE that being "a role model" for the girls who look up to her is "one of the most important parts" of what she wants to do with her career.
"Women's sports is something that I want to support and leave my legacy on," Dunne says. "I want to show other athletes that you can have it all — especially women," she says.
Dunne, currently a junior at Louisiana State University, is the NIL's highest-paid female athlete, bringing in over three million dollars in brand deals.
Her SI Swimsuit spread makes Dunne one of the first college athletes to be featured in print for the coveted issue, an "incredible honor" not lost on Dunne. (The only other college athlete to ever be in SI Swimsuit will also make her debut in this year's issue.)
"When I first got the call, I honestly was in disbelief," she says. "That's the best word to describe it. I got off the phone, I was screaming and jumping around, and I called my mom immediately, and I think I cried."
SI Swimsuit Editor-in-Chief MJ Day tells PEOPLE that she wanted to include Dunne, who has dealt with criticism during her rise to fame, for "owning" her worth as an athlete and a woman.
"Usually being a D1 athlete, an all-academic and an industrious entrepreneur is enough to garner respect and accolades. But when you are Livvy Dunne and you also mix in being arrestingly beautiful, you unfortunately garner the ire and resentment of a certain niche population," Day says. "... The backlash she received for 'leveraging' her sexuality for endorsement dollars after the NIL restrictions were lifted is incorrect. We are here to celebrate this incredible young woman and encourage the world to respect and applaud Livvy and her fellow athletes for owning the blood, sweat and tears that have fueled a lifetime of achievements."
And gracing the likes of SI Swimsuit tells Dunne she's heading in the right direction. "I'm excited to potentially follow in the footsteps of some of my role models, like Aly Raisman," she says. Raisman, 28, shot her own swim spread for SI in 2018.
"I just love everything she stands for," Dunne says of Raisman. "She's also a gymnast, so she's one of my athletic role models as well, and she's just been so kind to me and such a mentor."
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For Dunne, being a role model means showing girls that there are no limitations. Dunne says, "I can be an athlete, I can be strong, I can be beautiful, I can be confident and sexy — and sometimes people don't really realize that."
Dunne says that realization reminded her that she "can have the best of both worlds," the gymnast says.
The gymnast's millions of social media followers look to her for confidence, whether Dunne is winning on the mat or taking fans along with her during daily activities. Dunne thinks her success comes from her fans' appreciation of her consistent passion and hard work.
"It's doing what you love every single day," she says. "So for me, that's gymnastics, that's spending time with my friends on the team, talking to my family every day and being a student and learning."
Shooting the spread in Puerto Rico with photographer Ben Watts made Dunne feel "so confident," she says. "Everyone on set was so kind and just wanted to lift me up."
Surprisingly, Dunne says she feels differently in front of the camera when she's wearing a swimsuit instead of a leotard on the mat. "When I'm in a leotard, I am fully just thinking about my sport," Dunne explains.
"And then when I shot for SI, I honestly just felt so confident and I love what the whole brand stands for and how they pick up women and make them feel so confident," she adds.
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