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Canadian pole vaulter and OnlyFans model Alysha Newman revealed the reason behind her controversial twerking celebration after taking the bronze medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics on Thursday (August 8).
“I’m always injured, and I’m always getting back on the horse so I said I’m gonna go and scare my coaches because I want them to lighten up.” Newman told CBC Sports. “So I said I’m gonna fake an injury and dance after.”
“It just happened very fluid,” Newman added. “I didn’t think I’m gonna twerk, but just from grabbing that to getting to the knee with a twerk it all just worked out in one.”
Newman, 30, cleared 4.85 meters before being over and twerking toward the crowds and television cameras while smiling, which critics believed was a way to promote her OnlyFans account, which she admitted saw a significant spike since the celebration.
“Of course, many people have a certain cliché when they think of OnlyFans. I can’t change many people’s minds,” Newman told German media outlet BILD.
Newman became the first Canadian woman to ever medal in pole vaulting at the Olympics. The 30-year-old said she "retired a million times in her head" after failing to qualify at the pandemic-delayed Tokyo Olympics in 2021 before returning to competition for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
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