Former UCLA gymnast Katelyn Ohashi went viral in January for a floor routine that earned her a perfect 10.
But, even as her performance racked up millions of views online and even got her on national TV shows like Good Morning America, that perfect 10 is all she earned off her viral moment.
She didn’t make a dime due to the NCAA’s amateur model, which does not allow college athletes to profit off their own name, image or likeness. In a video op-ed with the New York Times published Wednesday, Ohashi says she felt stifled by NCAA regulations as she gained name recognition:
“Along with this came a lot of attention and opportunities, but I couldn’t capitalize on them. I was handcuffed by the NCAA rules that prevented me from deriving any benefit from my own name and likeness, regardless of the fact that after my final meet, I had no pro league to join.”
Ohashi stated her support for California’s Fair Pay to Play Act, which was signed into law on Sept. 30 and has led the charge for other states across the country to introduce their own versions of the legislation. She says things could have been drastically different for her had she been allowed to profit off her big moment:
“The NCAA is a billion-dollar industry built on the backs of college athletes. How different would things be for me had I been able to use my image and name my last year of school in order to promote the things I want to further my future? I want to make sure the next person doesn’t have to wonder.”
