Vitaly Zdorovetskiy: The streaking prankster who created a pathbreaking legacy with his stunts on sports fields
While Instagram model Kelly Kay does not appear to have any "regrets" about storming the field during Super Bowl 2020, it's important to know who actually inspired her to carry out the saucy stunt.
“Do what you want, when you want, life’s too short to have regrets. Thanks, @nfl for having me,” Kay wrote on Instagram alongside a series of images from the moment stadium security dragged her away. In the post, the 27-year-old bombshell also tagged @vitalystreaking -- a venture spearheaded by Russian-born prankster Vitaly Zdorovetskiy, who has, over the years, repeatedly grabbed headlines for all the wrong reasons.
The unabashed internet sensation heaped praise on Kay's on-field theatrics the day she was released from custody.
Vitaly is well known for causing trouble all over the world. The 27-year-old's prank videos on YouTube, his adult site Vitaly Uncensored, as well as his ballsy streaks during primetime events have earned him considerable notoriety across the webosphere -- something he has brilliantly used to his advantage.
When he was just starting out, Vitaly had no plans of becoming a prankster for YouTube. All he wanted to do was film his skateboarding skills, but injuries caused him to give up and he somehow found himself in the adult film industry. However, he soon realized it wasn't for him.
The World Cup final streak
Vitaly Zdorovetskiy rose to stardom with his notorious zombie and Russian hitman prank videos. In fact, the latter also got him arrested, resulting in the prankster getting even more attention than before. The popularity of Vitaly's headline-grabbing pranks probably motivated him to fly to Brazil, where he would make his first mark on the world stage by streaking the 2014 FIFA World Cup final.
The stunt was so successful that the final came to be remembered for two reasons -- Germany's stunning overtime goal and Vitaly Zdorovetskiy streaking across the field and trying to kiss German defender Benedict Howedes.
The world took notice of a new kind of provocateur that evening as Vitaly tackled security and ran circles around the stadium with “Natural Born Prankster" emblazoned on his bare chest.
The NBA finals streak
While the World Cup Streak earned the fearless prankster all the fame he could possibly hope for, it also emboldened him to do it again. After some failed attempts, he would set his eyes on another popular sporting event to be his next "breakout" moment -- the 2016 NBA finals. As the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers prepared for the final tussle in Game 4, Vitaly ran onto the court and took off his shirt -- this time declaring to the world that "Trump Sucks."
That said, the NBA probably isn't the best place to streak: There are police in all directions and the court is rather small. Just moments after Vitaly stormed the arena, authorities caught hold of him and slammed him on the floor, taking him away in handcuffs. Despite being fined $1,000 for his antics, he didn't care -- the streak had already earned him millions of dollars worth of advertising.
The World Series streak
Vitaly's next stop was Game 5 of The World Series. This time, the prankster ran across the pitch only in his boxers -- which resembled the star-spangled banner. As Vitaly stormed the baseball pitch at the bottom of the 7th inning, police at the Minute Maid Park sprung into action and arrested him. He would later be charged with Criminal Trespassing.
That said, the famed prankster's legacy is now being carried forward by his friends and associates.
Following Vitaly's footsteps, his former girlfriend Kinsey Wolanski streaked the UEFA Champions League Final between Tottenham and Liverpool in a bid to promote Vitaly Uncensored. The blonde bombshell, who goes by the handle @KinseySue on Instagram, sent jaws dropping as she took to the pitch during the match wearing a skimpy swimsuit with the words "Vitaly Uncensored" emblazoned across the front.
The brazen stunt would earn more than a million fans for Kinsey as viewers rushed to her Instagram to drool at her stunning figure. Vitaly spoke about the streak just hours after the event, boasting how they made over $4 million from sponsorship and signups to his adult site.
What's more? Vitaly's mother Elena also got in on the action during the ICC World Cup final between England and New Zealand at Lords Stadium last year. Elena was able to cross the advertisement boards, but was stopped by stadium security right before she could cross the boundary line and start streaking. Nonetheless, Vitaly had won -- garnering millions of dollars worth of advertising once again.
Vitaly - The Brand
All these stunts have contributed to building Vitaly's personal brand into a mammoth enterprise.Vitaly Zdorovetskiy now boasts over 10 million subscribers on YouTube and over three million followers on Instagram. In a recent interview with fellow YouTube star Logan Paul, he revealed he makes about $400,000 from his work on YouTube. Besides, he has also partnered with Bang Energy drinks and Dan Bilzerian's Ignite.
The prankster's total net worth now stands at a staggering $8 million.