Australian Olympic Volleyballers Selling Tattoo Advertisements

Some people would do anything for a buck. When you’re an Olympic hopeful who spends most of the time practicing and trying to fulfill a lifelong dream, the bucks can be tough to come by.  Luckily there are people like Australian volleyball player Claire Kelly who know how to think outside the box.

According to MyFoxDC via Fanattic Network, Kelly has petitioned companies to place permanent tattoos on her body to be seen during competition.  Packages are being offered directly to companies and sold on eBay for around $10,000 for a 0.8 inch x 0.8 inch on the left limb and roughly $50,000 for a 1.9 inch x 1.9 inch tat on the right arm or shoulder.  She said she hopes the money will help give her and her partner, Carla Kleverlaan, the financial backing they need for the 2012 Summer Games in London.

“It’s taken me months to get the courage to do this and now I’m going through with it,” Kelly explained. “I was thinking, ‘Tattoo my body with a business logo just so I can have a chance to play for my country at the Olympics? I’m crazy’!

“This is my dream and it seems crazy not to try to do something to realize the dream. We need to head off on the world tour before the end of July, we need financial backing, so I can’t let fear stop me.”

Would you get a tattoo if someone paid you $10,000?  That’s what we call commitment.  It’s tough to say without actually being given the opportunity, but I think I would do it for that amount of money if the ink was on a place that wasn’t always showing on my body — like the shoulder or upper arm.  In any event, Kelly’s money-making scheme gives new meaning to the phrase “taking one for the team.”