Yolanda Hadid Defends Daughter Bella Hadid Over Controversial Nike Photos

The Olympic gold medal-winning ice dancer and former Dancing With The Stars champion

By Corinne Heller Nov 18, 2016 6:41 PMTags
Yolanda Hadid, Bella HadidDimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Global Lyme Alliance

Mama bear Yolanda Hadid will not tolerate public attacks against her children.

The former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star's 20-year-old model daughter Bella Hadid had announced earlier this week on Instagram she had become a Nike spokesmodel, posting a photo showing her standing in workout gear on a New York City street with a billboard showing her in a new ad for the brand.

Olympic gold medal-winning ice dancer and former Dancing With The Stars champion Meryl Davis included Bella in a Twitter rant about the use of non-athletes to promote athletic apparel, including a pic of Bella in a Nike crop top. Many fans echoed the Olympian's criticism and also commented that the model looked too skinny in the photo she posted herself.

"You obviously don't have to be an athlete to wear or enjoy Nike wear," TMZ quoted Yolanda as saying in comments posted Friday.

The reality star did not comment on her daughter's weight.

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Bella Hadid's Best Looks

??so excited to announce that I am OFFICIALLY PART OF THE @NIKE FAMILY! More coming very soon ??????

A photo posted by Bella Hadid (@bellahadid) on

??Congratulations my love on your new collaboration with @Nike @bellahadid #NewYorkMade #ProudMommy

A photo posted by YOLANDA (@yolanda.hadid) on

Yolanda, who shared her own Instagram pic of Bella's Nike billboard, also added the model had dreams of becoming an Olympic contender and was forced to quit competitive equestrian riding, which she did every weekend from age 3 until 15, when the teen got Lyme disease.

Yolanda also shared a childhood photo of Bella on horseback at a competition, saying, "Always remember who you were before the world told you who you should be.... @bellahadid #athlete #horselover."

A photo posted by YOLANDA (@yolanda.hadid) on

Yolanda had said on her BravoTV.com blog in January Bella "had to give up her lifelong dream of having a professional riding career and a shot at the Olympics due to her severe symptoms and inability to ride" and "struggles with symptoms of chronic Lyme every day."

Yolanda is open about her own Lyme disease struggle and has chronicled her road to recovery on social media. She revealed last year Bella and her youngest child, son Anwar Hadid, 17, were both diagnosed with the tick-borne illness several years ago and have "made good progress." The family had lived on a horse ranch in Santa Barbara for 10 years.

"Watching my babies struggle in silence in order to support me in my journey struck the deepest core of hopelessness inside of me," Yolanda had said at the 2015 "Power of One" Awards at the inaugural Global Lyme Alliance gala in New York.