How a viral photo almost destroyed pole vaulter Allison Stokke

At just 17, Allison Stokke became a viral star after an image of her pole vaulting was posted in an online blog. While fame can do wonders for an athlete's career, this was anything but helpful. Let's look at what happened.

Born in Newport Beach, California (USA), on March 22, 1989, Stokke wanted to dedicate herself to pole vaulting after entering the world of gymnastics. She was very talented despite her age and was on the path to becoming one of the best vaulters in the country.

While she attended Newport Harbor High School, Stokke won the American Pole Vault Championship title in 2004. She obtained the record of 3.81 meters (12.5ft). That same year, she became the California state champion.

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Sadly, those great achievements faded into the background as her image went viral online. Almost everyone on the internet knew who Stokke was.

Blogger Matt Ufford was the first to spread her images online, which sparked controversial conversations left and right. He titled his post "Pole Vaulting is Sexy, Barely Legal."

Her internet fame quickly became a burden. Her images would travel from blog post to blog post, fueling the rhetoric that sexualized her in the first place.

According to Tie Breaker, Stokke tried to steer people away from sexualizing her physique and appreciate her vaulting skills. The American decided to release her video on YouTube to emphasise this. Unfortunately, the move backfired as her "fans" only echoed the sexualizing comments.

During an interview for the Washington Post, the American athlete underlined her frustration with her lack of recognition and how people simply ignore the sport. Mainstream media like CNN went off to spin the story of why young people should stay away from the internet.

Completely overwhelmed by the situation, the young Stokke went several weeks without leaving her house. According to the Spanish publication El Español, Stokke overcame her fears and allowed fame to fade away with time to live a normal life again.

Stokke continued pole vaulting, attending the University of California-Berkeley, where she studied Sociology. She joined the California Golden Bears pole-vaulting team.

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In this new stage of her life, she competed at the highest level in the United States and even came close to qualifying for the 2012 London Olympics.

Stokke now combined the life of a professional athlete with that of a sportswear model, representing well-known brands such as Nike, Gap, GoPro and Uniqlo.

Her image is still often shared on social media, where she continues to be active. On Instagram alone, she has almost 650,000 followers.

Stokke was going to be the protagonist in the Red Bull TV documentary 'Two Roads,' which focuses on the long and complicated road to success as an athlete.

The documentary highlights the personal and professional trials and triumphs, including dealing with internet fame and the loneliness that can come from being a professional athlete.

In 2016, she began a romantic relationship with the Californian golfer Rickie Fowler, whom she married in 2019. That same year, their daughter Maya was born. They currently live in Florida, far from their native California.

She seems to have embraced that life, though, and it is common to see Stokke on the golf courses accompanying Fowler. In fact, she even caddies for him on occasion.

Stokke managed to navigate the complications that come with overnight fame and has since gone on to become a voice for young female athletes, standing tall as someone who has been through it all.

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