From watching behind-the-scenes Olympic content on her smartphone as a youngster to starring in her own, life has come full circle for United States paddler Evy Leibfarth.
The 20-year-old secured Olympic bronze in the women’s canoe final at Paris 2024 yesterday.
Away from the waters, Leibfarth wears another hat as a social media manager, engaging and producing content for her growing audience of over 100K followers on Instagram.
High-performance athletes often speak about the pressures of living in a world of social media, with some even taking breaks to refocus.
However, Leibfarth fully embraces this dual role and excels at it, as she prepares to continue her journey in Paris, when kayak cross makes its Olympic debut.
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“Oh my gosh, it’s a full-time job but I know that when I was younger I liked watching behind the scenes at the Olympics,” Leibfarth said.
“It looked a lot different as there was much more on YouTube back then.
“It inspired me to go to show that the athletes are human and that they are just people and they are hilarious people too.
“It’s enjoyable for me to share that journey with everyone else and it’s something that I enjoy doing.”
Last week, an emotional Leibfarth posted a video of herself at the Opening Ceremony on the River Seine.
Her emotions overflowed again as she referred to her reaction as “ugly crying” once the women’s canoe medals were confirmed at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium.
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Juggling production and editing with ease, Leibfarth credits her best friend and Mexican rival, Sofia Reinoso, with helping brainstorm ideas.
“It’s me and my best friend Sofia. She is from Mexico and is competing here too. We work on it together and bounce ideas off each other,” she said.
Regarding online engagement, Leibfarth doesn't shy away from trolls who suggest she focus more on being an athlete.
“Oh my god, it’s like double, it’s crazy. It’s so exciting. I love that there are so many people in my comments like ‘you really need to focus more on being an athlete if you are going to medal.’
“It seems like it worked.”
