Olympic athlete forced to sell 'saucy content' in order to ‘make ends meet’
As we relish the midway point of the staggeringly impressive 2024 Olympic Games, many spectators have been left wondering what this year's most triumphant athletes could be sent to pocket - as well as a medal, of course.
In the world of professional competitive sport, however, winning moments are sporadic and often unexpected, meaning it can prove to be a pretty unstable career for some competitors.
So much so, that the father of one of Team GB's athletes competing in Paris this summer has revealed that his son has been forced to sell 'saucy content' online.
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Men's synchronised 3m springboard diver Jack Laughter continued to keep the bar high for Britain earlier today, after being awarded a bronze medal.
He and partner Anthony Harding bagged the impressive accolade after narrowly losing out to silver medallists, Mexico’s Juan Manuel Celaya Hernandez and Osmar Olivera Ibarra, and China's gold medal winners, Daoyi Long and Zongyuan Wang in the nail-biting head to head.
And whilst one might think that walking away from a tournament as prestigious as this with a medal surely must earn you the big bucks, Jack's father has now revealed that, at times, his 29-year-old son struggled to pay his way.
Speaking to BBC Radio York, Dave Laughter told listeners that his Jack regularly uploaded x-rated material to popular adult subscription site, OnlyFans.
"I actually suggested it to him, but it's nothing that you couldn't show your grandma," Dave admitted.
Thankfully, Dave isn't ashamed of his award-winning son's online antics, admitting he understands that sharing content on social media sites is a commonplace means of making money this days.
In fact, the father claims he's more than aware of the popularity of his son's 'saucy content', and believes he's even 'got a reputation' for it.
Joking that his work uniform is, essentially, a 'pair of trunks', Dave teased: "There's nothing left to the imagination when you just wear trunks all the time and he just posts pictures of himself as you would see him if he was in a competition."
Dave believes, however, that Jack - who also won gold and silver in diving at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro - shouldn't be forced to undertake such measures in order to make money.
He confessed that it saddens him that the young athlete 'has to try to make extra money to make ends meet, when really he should be getting the funding that he needs'.
Jack - who previously picked up three gold medals at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Australia, as well as another bronze at the Tokyo Olympics back in 2021 - has also spoken out on the matter.
Admitting that, though he's aware of the negative connotations that come with online subscription services, he's more than happy to 'cash in' on the success rate of celebrities and sports stars taking part.
"Obviously, I've got something people want, and I'll happily cash in on that - I don’t care," Jack told The Sun prior to the commencement of the 2024 games.
“I have done other side-hustles. I've done underwear modelling calendars. I've done other bits and bobs to try and just make some more cash basically.
“Of course I understand the way it's perceived, I get it. I understand that people might look at it negatively."
Insisting he's 'comfortable' with his content, he explained that his profile does not omit nudity, adding: "I'm not trying to put anyone in a bad light and not kind of make myself out to be something I'm not."
He continued: "It's just I've always liked modelling. I'm about a foot too short to be a proper underwear model, probably about five out of 10 missing on the scale of how good-looking I am as well.
"But I’ve always liked doing it. I like to show myself off and that’s what I’m doing but this way I can just make myself a little bit of cash and set myself up for the future a bit better."
Topics: Money, Olympics, Sport, UK News, OnlyFans, Cost of Living
Rhianna Benson