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Celebrities step up after American Olympian said she couldn't pay her rent

Rapper Flavor Flav and Reddit founder Alexis Ohanian are making sure Veronica Fraley doesn't have to worry about rent for the rest of the year.
Veronica Fraley
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This should be an exciting time for American Olympian Veronica Fraley, but instead of solely being focused on her competition, she has expressed worry about paying her rent back home.

"I compete in the Olympic Games TOMORROW and can’t even pay my rent 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," the 2024 NCAA discus champion posted Thursday on X.

The comment immediately got the attention of two high-profile celebrities who have been spotted at the Paris Olympics: rapper Flavor Flav and Reddit founder Alexis Ohanian, who is married to tennis superstar Serena Williams.

Flavor Flav responded to Fraley's post, telling her he would cover her rent so she didn't have to think about it while competing. Ohanian added that he would split the bill with Flavor Flav.

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It turns out, the pair came up with an even better solution. Flavor Flav said he covered Fraley's August rent and Ohanian posted a screenshot of more than $7,000 sent to the Olympian.

"Paid my rent this morning," Fraley said early Friday.

Fraley also started a GoFundMe campaign to help her continue her athletic career. As of Friday, more than $14,000 had been donated.

Fans of Fraley can watch her compete on Friday. Her qualification group is scheduled to take the field at 2:20 p.m. ET.