GAINESVILLE, Fla. — (AP) — Olivier Rioux pokes his head out the front door of Florida’s practice facility — the 7-foot-9 center has to duck, of course — and delivers a tidbit.
“Alberta reached out about doing a TikTok,” he says.
Blank stares.
“Alberta, the mascot,” he adds.
Ahh.
Rioux, the world’s tallest teenager, is one of top-seeded Florida’s most popular players heading into the NCAA Tournament — even though he has to take the court. Photos. Videos. Autographs. Interviews. The attention is immense. The requests are worldwide.
The 19-year-old Rioux handles them all as effortlessly as he touches a 10-foot rim and without anything in return. But the Canadian whose unusual height landed him a spot in the Guinness World Record is hoping to start earning money from use of his name, image and likeness in the United States.
Rioux has formally applied for an 0-1 visa, which is reserved for individuals with extraordinary ability or achievement in fields of science, art, …