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Former U.S. Gymnast Had "Severe Allergic Reaction" in Paris' Olympic Village
Levi Jung-Ruivivar, who is competing for the Philippines in 2024, said, “It definitely was a stressful night.”
Gymnast Levi Jung-Ruivivar — who was once a member of the U.S. national team — suffered a “scary” allergic reaction in Paris’ Olympic Village that sent her to the hospital on Monday.
Jung-Ruivivar, who is expected to compete in the 2024 Paris Olympics for the Philippines, shared on Instagram that she was walking through the Olympic Village Monday night when she suffered a “severe allergic reaction,” despite not having eaten for hours or knowingly getting any bug bites.
“I have an anaphylactic tree nut allergy,” she shared in another Instagram reel that showed her injecting herself with an EpiPen and riding in an ambulance during the tense episode. “I am unaware what caused this reaction as I didn’t have food 3 hours prior to when I started to feel the symptoms.”
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After noticing the symptoms, Jung-Ruivivar said she returned to her room and got help from her teammate Aleah Finnegan, another former member of the U.S. national team now competing for Philippines. Finnegan went with her to a medical emergency clinic in the village.
“On the way to the treatment center my allergy symptoms escalated rapidly and my breathing became significantly labored, my throat began to constrict, my chest was itching, and I had severe swelling,” she said. “It got to the point where I needed to use my EpiPen and I self-injected it on the way to the clinic.”
Although she said she always carries an EpiPen with her, it was only the second time she’s ever had to use it.
Jung-Ruivivar — who described the episode as “really scary” — eventually made her way to a hospital via an ambulance.
“It definitely was a stressful night and something that I’ll remember for the rest of my life,” she said in the video.
Jung-Ruivivar said she’s now “100% safe and healthy,” but acknowledged her muscles were feeling “fatigued” and the allergic reaction “definitely took a toll on my body.”
Despite the setback, she doesn’t plan to let the incident derail her Olympic dreams.
“My body is still recovering, but that’s not gonna stop me from competing at this Olympics,” she said.
Levi Jung-Ruivivar's Gymnastics Career
The Los Angeles native once competed for the U.S. national women’s gymnastics team, but announced in 2023 that she’d decided to represent the Philippines in a nod to her family’s heritage.
“My Poppie grew up in the Philippines before immigrating to the U.S. as a young adult,” she said at the time. “Being able to compete for the Philippines fills me with so much pride, appreciation, and joy. Growing up, Filipino culture has been a very important part of my life and I am beyond grateful to connect to my Filipino culture through my love for gymnastics.”
She obtained dual citizenship in 2022 and qualified to compete as an individual for the Philippines in the World Cup earlier this year, NBC News reported.
She’s also listed as an incoming freshman on Stanford University’s gymnastics team roster and is expected to compete for the school in the next academic year.
The Olympic women's gymnastics team qualifying event will be held Sunday, followed by the all-around competition beginning on Thursday, Aug.1.
