How Rugby’s Ilona Maher Became a Body Positivity Queen at the Olympics

2024 Olympics: Tom Cruise, Billie Eilish & More Stars Who Rocked the Closing Ceremony in Paris & LA!

Ilona Maher is dominating her field.

And we aren’t just talking about the rugby pitch. Because while the 28-year-old—who celebrated her birthday Aug. 12—has already proven to be a star player (we’ll let her performance at the 2024 Olympics and bronze medal speak for themselves) she’s also a star on social media.

But don’t take our word for it. Just ask Maher’s 2.3 million followers on TikTok. At this year’s Games in Paris, she’s won the gold in fans’ hearts by sharing everything from her “Olympic Fit Check” and takes on the cardboard beds to her new enthusiasm for handball and experiences at the Olympic Village—or the “Olympic Villa,” as she called it, à la Love Island.

And along the way, Maher met several other big names—posing for pics with Snoop Dogg and Katie Ledecky, joking about “trying to relate” to Coco Gauff by telling the tennis star how she once played pickleball and officially turning Jason Kelce into a women’s rugby fan.

“Do you get anything from being our super fan? No,” she told the former Philadelphia Eagles player in a July 28 video. “There’s no money, no benefits. I don’t think I can even give you free stuff.”

In addition to championing her sport, Maher is a champion for celebrating all bodies.

“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 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.”

Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for TIME

And the athlete hopes she can continue to tackle stereotypes and empower others.

“I think there has always been a divide,” she told CBS Mornings in an interview that aired July 29. “People believing that, oh, when you play sports, if you’re an athlete, you can’t be feminine. I feel that I can be a beast and can play this very physical, aggressive sport while also keeping my femininity while I do it.”

“People would always call me masculine, and I didn’t understand that,” she added. “But now, I’m like, ‘Oh, there’s a purpose here for it.’ I can stiff-arm, and I can fend, and I can get up and tackle as hard as I can. And that’s why I want other women to even just get in the gym and lift weights. Like, see what your body can do. Get to a point where you can do a pull-up. ‘Oh, man! I’m so powerful. I can do this.’ I just think it gave me a new perspective on my body.”

For her birthday this year, Maher told her followers to keep the celebrations low-key.

“Hey guys, it is my birthday tomorrow,” she said in an Aug. 11 Instagram Stories video. “You don’t have to make it a big deal. Like, you don’t have to do anything special. Just like some cakes, balloons, confetti. Like, a big rager. But other than that, super chill.”

You know, like kicking off the festivities by attending the Paris Olympics Closing Ceremony. Posting a video of her and her fellow Team USA members rocking their uniforms and counting down to her birthday, Maher captioned the clip, “HBD to me.”

To see more photos from the Closing Ceremony, keep reading.

(E! and NBC are both part of the NBCUniversal family).

This story was originally published July 30, 2024 at 1:37 p.m. PST.

Richard Pelham/Getty Images

Zaho de Sagazan

The singer-songwriter kicked off the closing ceremony with a performance of “Sous le Ciel de Paris.”

Maja Hitij/Getty Images

Leon Marchand

Team France’s star swimmer carried the torch from Paris’ Jardin des Tuileries to the Stade de France for the Closing Ceremony.

Arturo Holmes/Getty Images

Nick Mead & Katie Ledecky

The gold medal-winning rower and the swimmer, who added four medals including two gold to her ever-growing list of Olympic accolades, served as Team USA’s flag bearers.

Luke Hales/Getty Images

Tara Davis-Woodhall & Trinity Rodman

The gold medalists—Davis-Woodhall for long jump and Rodman for soccer—walk into the Stade de France alongside Team USA.

Jamie Squire/Getty Images

Tigst Assefa, Sifan Hassan & Hellen Obiri 

The medal ceremony for the final track and field event of the 2024 Olympics, the women’s marathon, took place at the Closing Ceremony, with Team Netherlands’ Hassan winning gold, while Assefa of Team Ethiopia took home silver and Team Kenya runner Hellen Obiri won bronze.

Jamie Squire/Getty Images

Golden Voyager

A Golden Voyager descents into the Stade de France during the Closing Ceremony.

Steph Chambers/Getty Images

Alain Roche

The Suiss Pianist played “Hymn to Apollo” while suspended into the air at the Stade de France.

Arturo Holmes/Getty Images

Stade de France

The pyrotechnics display inside the Stade de France after the assembly of the Olympic rings.

Carl Recine/Getty Images

Phoenix

The French indie rock band serenaded the Olympians with hits like “1901” and “Lisztomania”

Joris Verwijst/BSR Agency/Getty Images

Simone Biles & Karen Bass

The gymnastics star had a special role during the Closing Ceremony, joining the Los Angeles mayor to welcome the Games to Los Angeles for the 2028 Olympics.

Fabrizio Bensch- Pool/Getty Images

Tom Cruise

The Mission: Impossible star brought his stunt A-Game to the Closing Ceremony as he dropped into the Stade de France from the open roof.

Jamie Squire/Getty Images

Tom Cruise

But a freefall into the stadium wasn’t his only stunt as Simone and Karen handed him the Olympic flag to deliver to Los Angeles.

Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for LA28

Red Hot Chili Peppers

As the Olympic flag touched down in the U.S.A., the rock group kicked off a trio of performances in Venice Beach.

Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for LA28

Finneas & Billie Eilish

The siblings and longtime collaborators performed her hit “Birds of a Feather” as part of the Venice Beach concert welcoming the Olympics to Los Angeles in 2028.

Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for LA28

Snoop Dogg

The 2024 Olympics Special Correspondent took on a second role during—rounding out the LA28 handoff.

Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

Yseult

The French singer-songwriter performed the Frank Sinatra hit “My Way” to officially end the Closing Ceremony.

Michael Reaves/Getty Images

Stade de France

The 2024 Olympics officially concluded with a dazzling light show that lit up the Parisian sky.

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