Ahead of her Olympics debut, track and field athlete Veronica Fraley had a more pressing concern on her mind than the Games: Paying her rent on time.
Fraley, 24, lamented her situation on social media Thursday as she prepared for her women’s discus throw qualification round in Paris.
“I compete in the Olympic Games TOMORROW and can’t even pay my rent,” Fraley, is the 2024 NCAA discus champion, wrote on X. “my school only sent about 75% of my rent while they pay football players (who haven’t won anything) enough to buy new cars and houses”
Her post quickly drew the attention of rapper Flavor Flav and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, who both responded online pledging to help by sending Fraley some money directly.
“I gotchu,,, DM me and I’ll send payment TODAY so you don’t have to worry bout it TOMORROW,” Flav replied Thursday on X, “and imma be rooting for ya tomorrow LETZ GO,!!!
Flav, a founding member and the hype man of Public Enemy, has become known as a hype man for U.S. women’s water polo. He sponsored the team after player Maggie Steffens shared an Instagram post mentioning that many Olympians must work multiple jobs to support their athletic careers.
Ohanian, who is married to gold medal-winning tennis champion Serena Williams, also pledged to help Fraley on Thursday. He shared a screenshot of a $7,760 Venmo payment he sent her, writing that he chose that amount because he liked the number (it alludes to his venture capital firm, Seven Seven Six).
Fraley did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A representative for Ohanian declined to comment.
A representative for Flav confirmed that he paid Fraley’s rent in full. The representative did not disclose how much was sent.
Flav said through the representative that he is “happy to help out those who are representing the best of us. This is exactly why I’m in Paris and the awareness I been trying to bring to these athletes needs.”
Fraley’s post has generated an outpouring of sympathy from internet users who expressed shock that an Olympian wasn’t earning enough to make ends meet.
Fraley, who competed for Clemson University from 2019 to 2021, finished 10th overall in the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials, according to her bio page on the official athletic site of the Vanderbilt Commodores.
She is pursuing her second master’s degree from Vanderbilt in human development studies, according to a news release from the university’s athletic department. As a graduate student this year, she won a bronze medal in the discus at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials.
“Thanks for the supporting messages but I want to clarify my irritation isn’t with the school itself, mainly the rules that bar me from making the amount I’m WORTH as a collegiate athlete such as NIL which favors popularity over performance,” Fraley later wrote on X. “that’s all I’m sayin. Wish me luck tm!”
“NIL” is short for “name, image and likeness”; college athletes are allowed to be paid for the use of their names, images and likenesses in accordance with their states’ laws. A spokesperson for Vanderbilt, which is in Nashville, Tennessee, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
She thanked Flavor Flav directly and shared Ohanian’s post, on X.
“this makes every difference in the WORLD & I hope to represent team USA well this week,” she wrote.
She also shared a link to a GoFundMe campaign, asking for support from the broader public.
“After Paris, I am aiming for the 2025 World Championships and 2028 Olympics next as I begin my professional track and field career!” she wrote on X.
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