It appears Olivia Dunne could have a new competitor in the form of a pole vaulter, with track fans predicting University of Nebraska star Jess Gardner will be as big as the LSU gymnast in time to come.
The 21-year-old, who grew up in Lincoln, is in her junior year at said university, where she majors in advertising and public relations pre-med. She also minors in business and is planning to go to medical school after graduating.
Jess’s Instagram following is growing steadily. She was at 78K followers as of late February but is up to 99.4K. She also has a healthy TikTok following, which stands at 183.9K and has garnered over two million likes across her videos.
As mentioned above, the Huskers star is drawing comparisons to Olivia, who is the most followed NCAA athlete on the internet, as well as the most popular. The Tigers gymnast has also landed the most lucrative college deals since the introduction of NIL and has a net worth of $3.3 million.
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Some of Jess’s content is similar to Olivia’s as she posts dances with her teammates while she also uploads workout videos and fitness tips.
Gardner started with track and field at North Star High School in Lincoln. She finished in 15th at the Big Ten Indoor Championships with a season-best of 3.97m and has an outdoor career best of 4.17m.
