Category Archives: News

Dara Torres (16,400 total followers) is a 12x Olympic medalist, Sports Illustrated model, NY Times Best Selling Author, TV Host, and mom. She continues to prove that there is no limit to what she can do, and nothing that will set her back.

Dara received her first Olympic medal in 1984, and her last one at the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008 where she became the oldest swimmer to compete in the Olympic Games, as well as the Olympian with the most years between their first and last medals.

In Beijing she took home three silver medals, including the heartbreaking 50-meter freestyle race, where she missed the Gold by 1/100th of a second. America loved her all the more for her astonishing achievement and her good-natured acceptance of the results. 

As of 2019, she was inducted into the United State Olympic and Paralympic Hall of Fame among other Olympic legends. Her impressive performance in Beijing, and her attempt at the 2012 London Olympic Games has inspired many older athletes to consider re-entering competition. Even after giving birth to her daughter at age 41, she continued to compete, making her even more remarkable considering Olympians who are moms are far to none. 

Aside from her amazing accomplishments in the pool, Dara has many other talents on dry land as well. After completing her Olympic journey, Dara not only wanted to continue sharing her experiences, but also wanted to inspire people to reach their greatest potential. She went on to publish her memoir “Age is Just a Number: Achieve Your Dreams at Any Stage in Your Life,” and after being released in April 2009, it was listed as one of the top 25 best-selling business books by June. She has become a top-selling author, as her second book,  “Gold Medal Fitness: A Revolutionary 5-Week Program” hit stands in May 2010 and is now a New York Times Best-Seller.

To add to Dara’s accolades she was the first female athlete ever to be featured in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, and in 2009, won the ESPY award for “Best Comeback.” She was also named one of the “Top Female Athletes of the Decade” by Sports Illustrated Magazine, and was featured on the cover of People Magazine as an exclusive piece about her 30 year journey with asthma. Her efforts are extremely notable, and incredibly impressive.

Today she proceeds to spread her message while appearing on such shows as Fox News, ESPN, CNN, Piers Morgan Tonight, Today Show, Good Morning America, Kelly and Regis, and various others. She is also a highly sought after Motivational Keynote Speaker for corporate conferences, leadership summits, fundraisers and especially women’s conferences. Dara feels passionate not only about telling her tale, but also bringing a new perspective to her audience about their capabilities, how to overcome obstacles, and how to be their greatest selves. 

What better way to lead into this year’s Olympic games than with an Olympic icon?

Food and sports are a match made in heaven. Food Renegades and Chefs: Darryl Postelnick (3.3 million total followers), Matt Groark (3.6 million total followers), Trazia Rae (2.4 million total followers), and Chef Darian Brian (85,000 total followers) have also become focal points when it comes to sports and cooking.

Darryl Postelnick aka Cooking With Darryl, is a huge influence in the golf space as well as in all Chicago sports. He consistently creates content around the big golf tournaments such as the Masters, which took place this past week, and his videos amassed over 1 million views and hundreds of comments obsessing over his perfect dip to bring to your Masters par-tee, his Masters Sunday seafood, and his Master Party queso birria tacos! Last year Darryl also went hyper-viral for making the signature cocktail the “John Daly,” which  was featured on many sports outlets covering the debate between it being named the John Daly or the Arnold Palmer. His audience remained extremely engaged in the discussions and followed along contributing to the increased success of the content he produced.

In addition to creating content centered around the PGA’s largest tournaments, Darryl attended the most recent Waste Management Open, creating content with his longtime sponsor Rhoback. Aside from golf, Darryl has also done on-site activations with the Chicago Bears, Chicago Cubs, Chicago Blackhawks and Arizona State University which have been incredibly successful as well. 

Matt Groark aka The Meat teacher is a die hard Eagles and Phillies fan, and knows how to tailgate better than anyone. He attended this year’s Super Bowl with Recteq and Virgin Hotels and participated in Recteq’s Tailgate Showdown where he went head to head with another culinary influencer to see who has the best tailgate bites in the nation! Aside from attending huge events like this one, Matt also attends many other games throughout the football and baseball seasons and has even created his own tailgate series. He also partnered with Draftkings the #1 online casino in America to promote their new deal for new customers that is juicier than his steaks. Grilling may be his passion, but sports are not far behind. 

Trazia Rae may be an icon in the food space, but she is not stopping at the kitchen. Nothing sounds better to her than taking her expertise to the race tracks and creating content trackside! Trazia’s husband Josh is an Xfinity Nascar driver, and she often travels by RV to attend his races. Don’t think for a second though that she is leaving her talents at home. Trazia has partnered with Napoleon Grills to showcase how she uses their portable gas grill and how convenient it is to whip up burgers and brats while traveling and always being on the go. These races may be about Josh, but she has definitely crept her way into the spotlight. She also teamed up with Azuna to take his stinky car to the next level and get rid of all bad smells with Azuna’s auto odor eliminator. Now his car always smells fresh, there’s always food onsight, and everyone is always happy. 

Chef  Darian Brian went from zero to hero in the blink of an eye. Sports are his specialty, and while he is a big time chef to individual NFL players, he is also the go-to chef to the Buffalo Bills. His creations are limitless and taste even better than they look. There is no question as to why people of such high calibers are begging for his food. Von Miller, linebacker for the Buffalo Bills raves about Darian’s caribbean food on his podcast, and Jordan Poyer recently shouted out his new Jamaican restaurant in a press conference, talking about how excited he is to head over there with his team. The comments and engagement on this post are remarkable from people who have already been to the restaurant, in addition to others who are talking about “flying down to try it.” Darian’s accomplishments and relationships are more than impressive. He made his own post with Bills players Stefon Diggs, and Von Miller wishing them luck in their game and exclaiming that he does not see them as clients, but rather as family. 

The impact these food Renegades have made on the sports industry is remarkable, however it is not shocking. Their talents are unlike any other, and the partnerships, and communities they have created for themselves have only continued to grow. There is no limit when it comes to events they will attend, deals they will partake in, and bonds they will make. 

NIL volleyball star Ally Batenhorst (256k total followers) continues to prove that she is an Allstar both on and off the court, and now she is being recognized for it. Ally is 1 of 8 nominees for Athlete Creator of The Year by the NIL Summit. She posts a variety of content that appeals to her diverse audience from talking about her relationship, to making get ready with me videos, and showing days in her life at college. 

Currently Ally is playing beach volleyball at Nebraska, however she recently announced her transfer to the University of Southern California for the 2024 fall season. While making this tough decision to transfer, Ally was simultaneously an ambassador for Olipop, nonstop posting content that appeals greatly to her Gen Z audience who actively engages in the comments. Ally has also become a representative of Azuna where she is able to reach moms and daughters trying to escape odors from stinky gear. 

In addition, she partnered with VKTRY and posted about how their insoles are game changers! Her 2 videos have a combined total of over 2.4 million views, and hundreds of comments obsessing over the content.  

She continues to impress and it is evident that big things are on the way for her. You do not want to miss out on Ally’s upcoming partnerships, or her next season on her new team. Stay tuned to see the results of her nomination and to work with Ally please email christina@celebexperts.com

From spring cleaning content to brand deals and so much more, Jessica Haizman (1.5 million total followers) is always converting and influencing her audience to try out products and methods that she lives and swears by. Her spring cleaning challenge is a huge hit because it makes decluttering and getting rid of stuff easy, less overwhelming, and enticing. There are so many things that need to get done that somehow make their way to the bottom of the list and never actually end up getting cleaned up or taken care of. Jessica pushes a “you can do it too” mindset on her audience and lets them know that even as an aesthetic creator, she also loses control and needs a reset from time to time.

Jessica is a busy mother to a 2 ½ year old daughter and has another baby on the way. She is also a dog mom so you can only imagine how chaotic a day in her life is. She knows that she is not alone though as many of her followers mention that they can relate and appreciate her being so real with them. In addition to her cleaning content, she posts a ton about motherhood and simple products that take the edge off, and make her life a whole lot easier. One product that Jessica recently discovered was unisex toddler shoes that are stretchy, flexible, and easy to slip on. Now leaving the house takes half the time and there is no more tugging and forcing to squeeze her child’s foot into a narrow shoe with laces or velcros. Impressively, after Jessica posted only a handful of times about this product, her followers became obsessed and completely sold them out. One video about them received over 2,000 comments asking for the link. 

Being that she has a full house and is looking to keep everyone clean, safe, and protected, she values nontoxic products such as Azuna that keeps her air smelling and feeling fresh and clean so that the variety of smells constantly passing through is totally eliminated. Jessica’s partnership with Azuna has converted incredibly and she has been a long time ambassador of the brand.

We are so excited to announce that we have a new Renegade! Cassandra Lepore(@dietitiancass with 127,000 total followers) is a registered dietitian (RD) who advocates for sustainable and straightforward nutritional advice while debunking common nutrition myths shared across social media.

Cassandra first got into social media when she realized there was a significant amount of nutrition misinformation being spread with very little supporting facts. From there she began creating content with the goal of educating her audience on nutrition with evidence-based research. 

Cassandra has only been creating content for a short period of time, however she has managed to grow her platforms by being 100% authentic and emphasizing the importance of balance throughout her posts. Her audience admires her for showing why even as a dietitian, indulging is a part of life, and how it is necessary to enjoy your favorite foods and create a diet and routine that is sustainable rather than temporary. 

In addition to talking about the way she eats, she loves to share her favorite grocery store finds that are always changing depending on the store, the season, and new releases. Her followers also love these posts because it makes their trips to the grocery store faster, easier, and more exciting. They see her talk about a product and drop everything to find it. 

The options that she presents to her audience are not only enticing, however they are relatable. Often she shares quick meals as well as snacks that are both straightforward and convenient. Being that she along with her audience is always on the go, it is important that these options are established and presented in a way that lets people know that a delicious recipe does not demand much time. Her easy meal and snack options not only boost her engagement, but also increase the awareness of the brands she collaborates with. She recently partnered with Yes! Apples to make her own take of the viral apple donuts and her followers absolutely loved it commenting “These were the best apples I’ve ever had!” and “Need this ASAP!”

Prior to that video, she posted a three-ingredient meal recipe  that received over 1 million views and left her audience craving more. She knows what people want and what will healthily satisfy that voice in their head restricting them from binging.