In the days prior, calf and achilles mobility are always a priority. Targeted stretching, soft tissue release on the lower leg, activation work to keep the glutes and hamstrings online so the smaller stabilizers don't have to carry the load when the ankle is compromised. The night of, heels come off at any moment they can. Morning-after recovery is non-negotiable: compression boots, lower leg therapy, and a movement session that prioritizes restoring range before anything loaded goes through the body. You can’t go straight from a gala to a track session.

Most athletes have to hustle for their relevance. Coco Gauff became the highest-paid female sportsperson in the world last year, but most of her $30 million income derived from brand campaigns, not sport. (She earned $8 million for tennis.) Freestyle skier Eileen Gu was fourth on that list, earning $23 million last year. In 2025, she earned less than $1 million for her sport. Naomi Osaka earned $11 million in endorsements and $2 million for sport; Simone Biles earned $11 million in endorsements and zero million from gymnastics. Most women athletes could only dream of these lucrative off-duty contracts. Red carpet events are a tool to get us closer. Glamorous dresses worn at glamorous events move the needle more than the average onlooker would realize. 

Another thing people don’t realize: most athletes do not have personal stylists, publicists or personal assistants. And in red carpet instances, we have to hustle for our outfits, too. Where others attending the Met will have confirmed their attendance and gowns three months prior, I had myself and my cell phone. I took time away from training or spent personal downtime calling around to ask for help. That’s another reason why relationship building is important. In the real world, Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother doesn’t exist. But Alec Maxwell, the then-digital director of British Vogue, did. "Alec, I have nothing to wear,” I told him. "Leave it with me,” he said. 

Dena Giannini arrived at my hotel. As one of the world’s best stylists and the fashion director of Vogue Hong Kong, she was in town to style Billie Eilish for the Met; Alec had called her, asking her to assist me. She brought rails of couture with her. Alaia. Gucci. Ferragamo. McQueen. Pieces that have never been on a red carpet. Pieces I have the option of wearing thanks to that one phone call, my contacts book, and the generosity of others. It was also down to my ability to hustle, which women athletes learn quickly, given most are chronically underpaid. 

I chose a white Giambattista Valli. Ruffled. Feathered. "My team will tailor it overnight," said Giannini. What nobody sees behind that gown is everything that had to be managed to make my presence possible. Showing up in a fabulous dress isn't enough. You need the right stylist, plus the right dress from the right collection, to earn the right attention from the right publications. A red carpet moment transcends the red carpet; it can lead to brand campaigns, magazine covers, and partnerships that actually pay the bills because sport still doesn’t. The annual cost of my training has yet to be covered by my competition fees, in all my years as an athlete. 

Sports contracts for female athletes are never in our favor. They are always extracting more than they give. I was a Nike global brand ambassador amid a three-year contract when I chose to terminate it. I had witnessed firsthand that Nike was paying models, personal trainers and influencers more than athletes to star in the same campaigns. Allyson Felix, the U.S. track athlete, was offered a 70 per cent pay cut from Nike after falling pregnant; she publicly fought to stop the company penalizing more women through writing an opinion piece in The New York Times. I watched that fight and learned from it. And when I saw the system clearly myself, I walked. 

I once worked with Everlast, the British boxing brand, and their model was simple and brutal. Buried in the small print of a long contract was a caveat: if you don't win, you don't get paid. Lose a gruelling fight—the kind that’d take me weeks to recover from—and we got nothing. The wins belong to both of you, but the losses belong to you alone. 

Cartier didn't call about the Met because they checked my metrics. Cartier saw legacy and cultural impact. They saw value in being first to bring a female boxer to fashion's biggest night. For me, the Met Gala weekend built everything that followed. My haute couture fight kit from brands like Off-White, Versace, and Balenciaga. Magazine covers. Each connection compounds the next. 

Athletes go to red carpets because the economics of female sport force us to find income and visibility wherever we can. For an athlete, a red carpet event is not leisure. It's not vanity. It's a business meeting with better lighting. For female athletes specifically, it's often the only room with creative directors, global heads of press, and brand partners—people who think in years rather than single moments. 

Wearing a beautiful designer dress and appearing in red carpet coverage and best-dressed carousels puts women athletes front and center as part of the cultural conversation. It offers more visibility and publicity than an athlete’s salary could buy. It broadens our reach, putting us on the radars of those who may not watch our sport. An invitation to somewhere like the Met Gala or the Oscars opens doors. You have to be in the room to play the game. 

THE TAKEAWAYS