Who is Ilona Maher? The Olympic rugby star, TikTok sensation and major advocate for body positivity

People tuning into the Paris 2024 Olympics may know Ilona Maher as the US women’s rugby team’s star player, but fans on TikTok have loved Maher long before she earned her first Olympic medal.

The 27-year-old rugby sevens player helped lead Team USA to score its first-ever bronze medal in rugby on Tuesday, after defeating Australia 14 to 12. Fans of Maher, who has 1.9 million followers on TikTok, were ecstatic over the athlete’s victory and declared that there was no one more deserving of the recognition.

Maher, who also reached two million followers on Instagram after winning the bronze medal, has been a fan favorite both on and off the rugby field. She initially gained internet recognition at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics for her viral glimpses inside the Olympic Village – including her amusing review of the cardboard beds and thirsting for fellow Olympic athletes.

Not only has Maher become one of the most popular Olympians on TikTok, but she’s also become a vocal advocate for body positivity and self-love.

Who is Ilona Maher?

According to the Team USA website, Maher originally hails from Burlington, Vermont. She began playing rugby at 17 years old and went on to play the collegiate level at Quinnipiac University for three years. Maher plays center for the US women’s rugby team.

Her father, Meineke Maher, also played rugby at St Micheal’s College in Vermont.

Why is she viral on TikTok?

Maher has earned millions of fans on TikTok for her amusing Olympic-themed content. After touching down in France for the Paris 2024 Olympics, she jokingly compared the Olympic Village to the hit reality dating show, Love Island. In a video with more than seven million views, Maher had to be reminded that she’s off to the summer games to play rugby, not to find love.

However, the Love Island comparisons didn’t stop when she revealed in another viral video how her teammate, Naya Tapper, scored another athlete’s phone number. “Hey guys, there’s already success in the villa,” she quipped in the TikTok, sitting alongside Tapper in what appeared to be a cafeteria in the Olympic Village.

Maher pointed to Tapper, who exhibited a wide-eyed, almost frightened expression. Tapper quickly clarified she did not get any digits, just their social media account. “Well, she got an Insta,” Maher admitted. “She just stared this dude down. He stared at her. Then, he came over here.”

Maher giggled as she encouraged others to follow suit with strong “eye contact” when trying to attract the attention of potential love interests at the Olympics. “The power she has,” Maher added. “Power. Feminine wiles over here she’s using.”

She also gave fans her best runway model walk in her Team USA look for this year’s opening ceremony, designed by Ralph Lauren. “Ilona, you are CARRYING USA Olympics TikTok,” one fan wrote in the comments, while another TikTok user wrote: “Other than [Simone] Biles, I’ve never been more invested in an Olympian.”

Who are her celebrity fans?

While Maher has garnered a legion of fans online, she’s also received praise from famous figures and A-list faces. The rugby star made contact with Coco Gauff at the Paris 2024 opening ceremony, where she informed the tennis champion that she’s dabbled in pickleball.

“POV: do not try to relate to tennis players by saying you played pickleball one weekend,” she wrote over the TikTok clip of herself with Gauff.

She also met Snoop Dogg, and posed with the rapper in another viral TikTok from the Paris 2024 Olympics. Maher most recently gained a new fan in former Philadelphia Eagles player Jason Kelce, who has since declared himself an unofficial ambassador of women’s rugby.

What has Maher said about body positivity?

In addition to being an Olympic athlete, Maher has solidified herself as a champion for body positivity. Earlier this month, Maher took to the viral platform to respond to a troll who criticized her weight and body mass index (BMI).

“I bet that person has a 30 percent BMI,” the body-shamming comment read, to which Maher replied in a video: “I think you were trying to roast me, but this actually is a fact. I do have a BMI of 30 – well, 29.3 to be more exact.”

“As long as haters keep saying dumb stuff, I’m gonna keep clapping back,” she continued.

Maher admitted that she’s been “considered overweight” her whole life due to BMI standards, she maintained that she won’t let the scale define her or her view of herself. “BMI doesn’t really tell you what I can do. It doesn’t tell you what I do on the field, how fit I am,” Maher explained. “It’s just a couple numbers put together. It doesn’t tell you how much muscle I have or anything like that. So yeah, I do have a BMI of 30.”

“I am considered overweight,” she added, before telling her haters: “But alas, I’m going to the Olympics and you’re not.”

Ahead of the start of this year’s summer games, Maher also issued the important reminder that all body types are beautiful.

“As the Olympics officially start today, I want you all to take a look at all the different body types on display,” she said in a July 26 video ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympic opening ceremony. “All body types matter. All body types are worthy, from the smallest gymnast to the tallest volleyball player, from a rugby player to a shot-putter to a sprinter. All body types are beautiful, can do amazing things. So truly see yourself in these athletes and know that you can do it, too.”

Follow for live updates from the Paris 2024 Olympics here.