With piercing eyes, Ivet Lalova-Collio is a Bulgarian athlete specializing in 100 and 200 meters sprint events. The beautiful athlete is the 13th-fastest woman in the history of the 100 meters. In the 2004 Olympics, she finished fourth in the 100 meters and fifth in the 200 meters.
Though her career was put on hold due to a leg injury, she hopped (no pun intended) back into the sport, winning gold at the 2012 European Athletics Championships. She has participated in the Olympics four times. Her numerous Instagram followers can catch a glimpse of her training routine and her fancy vacations.
Yuliya Efimova
Yuliya Efimova took up swimming a the age of six. However, unlike most of us, who at this age are usually just busy splashing around in the water, she was going to be a professional. In fact, she was coached by her father, Andrey Yefimov.
In 2011, she moved to California, where she was coached by Dave Salo, the head coach at the University of Southern California. Efimova is a swimmer on the Russian National Team, though she's faced controversy due to steroids being banned in professional sports. She is a six-time World Champion and a former world record holder in the 50 meters breaststroke.
Skylar Diggins-Smith
Diggins-Smith is an American pro basketball player for the Pheonix Mercury in the WNBA. Diggins-Smith played for Notre Dame, who she led to three consecutive Final Fours. She finished her career at Notre Dame ranked first in points and steals and as a two-time winner of the Nancy Lieberman Award.
In 2013 she signed with Roc National Sports, becoming the first female athlete to sign with the company. Later in 2013, she signed an endorsement deal with Nike. Oh, and get this — other than her athletic achievements, and the family she has built with her husband, this woman also has a business degree!
Fátima Diame
With an impressive social media presence, Fátima Diame is a rising star. The Spanish athlete specializes in the triple jump. She represented Spain at the 2017 World Championships when she was only twenty years old, though she didn't reach the final. She won a bronze in the long jump at the 2015 European Junior Championships and is on her way to great things!
The young athlete enjoys the sponsorship of Adidas and the following of nearly four hundred thousand people on Instagram, where she posts some professional content as well as reels of herself goofing around either alone or with fellow athletes.
Brooke Mayo
Brooke Mayo made her professional MMA debut back in 2017 at Bellator 172, though this wasn't her initial foray into professional sport. Mayo did not start her career as a fighter — she was a Division-I soccer player. She loved running on the field and was one of the fastest on her team.
That's when she was diagnosed with chronic exertional compartment syndrome, an exercise-induced disease that produces pain and swelling in muscles in the arms and legs. Though she didn't expect her life to take such a drastic turn, she's happy she overcame her obstacles and found the MMA.