Olympic swimmer Missy Franklin is a known Belieber, but it turns out her love for the singer and the power of social media almost cost her her career. Say what?

Franklin damn near lost her mind -- like any self-respecting Belieber -- when Justin Bieber acknowledged her via tweet. The Bieber showed his appreciation and support by sending her a swag bag of t-shirts, CDs, posters and other goodies. She shared a photo of the items on Twitter.

But she didn't get to keep 'em. Not because she outgrew her love for the Biebs, but because receiving such gifts threatened her status as an amateur. So she couldn't fully enjoy her favorite singer's act of kindness.

“It was really sweet of him,” the swimmer revealed in a chat with ESPN. “But it was considered a form of special treatment that could have jeopardized my amateur status. I’ve given up way too much and sacrificed too much to keep a Justin Bieber T-shirt and lose it all. So I sent it back.”

What a bum out, though! We're not sure how receiving a care package of Biebs' stuff is "special treatment." It's not like it was steroids or he was paying her to wear Bieber shirts at events.

Turns out the Bieber items are not the only thing that she has had to nix in order to maintain her high school level swim status. She has had to pass on endorsement deals, as well, which are always lucrative. Just ask an NBA player about those, since hoops stars pretty much work for Nike, not the NBA, at this point.

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