British canoeist forced to decide between Olympic dream and his ‘spicy' OnlyFans page
The British athlete was reportedly suspended last month by governing body Paddle UK, and he suspects it has something to do with his racy activity online.
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'I have been posting videos (on Instagram) that are consciously made to be edgy in order to drive conversions to my 'spicy content page' (on OnlyFans), to fund this ultimate dream of going to the Olympics,' Rozentals said in an interview with BBC Sport.
Kurts Adams Rozentals, who competes in the individual canoe slalom, was suspended in April by governing body Paddle UK following 'allegations' about his posts on social media. Instagram/@kurtsadams
Paddle UK removed Rozentals from its World Class Programme pending an investigation Instagram/@kurtsadams
Rozentals was removed from the World Class Programme, an initiative for potential Olympic athletes, by Paddle UK pending investigation, leaving his canoeing dreams up in the air.
'I kind of froze and I couldn't believe the words I was hearing because this is what I put my life into this is everything I do,' Rozentals told the outlet of the moment he heard the news.
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'My personality at this point, my identity, is sport and I want to be a professional athlete chasing my Olympic dream.'
BBC Sport reported Rozentals 'has more than 10,000 'likes' on the platform and 'has posted 39 videos and over 100 photos' earning more than '£100,000 (about $135,000) since creating his OnlyFans account in January.'
'This is the hardest decision that I've ever faced in my life,' Rozentals said. 'I came to the realization about why I started doing this last winter after years of struggle, living on the edge, my mum working 90 hours-a-week, having bailiffs at the door.
Rozentals created his OnlyFans to help fund his training. Instagram/@kurtsadams
'I'm going to find a way where we don't have to struggle, where my mum can enjoy her life and I'm able to put everything into this sport because when you're thinking about how to pay the rent this month and you're standing at the start line, that's not very conducive (to performing well).'
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As a UK Paddle Programme athlete, Rozentals had been receiving £16,000 a year — around $21,600 — but said that's nowhere near enough to sustain himself.
'I don't know how much you need but it's certainly not £16,000,' said Rozentals. 'When you have to cover rent, travel, food… and most athletes who train full-time are all living in London.
Rozentals posts videos and pictures on his Instagram account to drive viewers towards the content. Instagram/@kurtsadams
'They're very fortunate to have parent backing — I wasn't. I never had the ability to move to London because of financial struggles so I was always doing the travel from the East Midlands, where I live, to London, back-and-forth, back-and-forth.'
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