Ilona Maher Talks Olympics, Social Media Career, and Bringing Rugby to the Forefront

Ilona Maher is the Olympic athlete-creator whisperer. She’s managed to entrance and invite online viewers into the sports world so naturally, large corporations trying to do the same can only dream about doing it with such finesse. Like many people, we first came across Maher during the 2021 Olympic cycle, her videos going viral inside the Olympic Village. Now, she’s back again at the 2024 Paris Olympics giving everyone exactly what they want to see. From her focus on body inclusivity to her creation of the Olympic Villa bit everyone is now playing into, Maher is massively shaping Olympic content.

Maher is originally from Vermont and grew up playing sports. She attended Norwich University for a year before transferring to Quinnipiac University to continue her rugby career. While at QU she won three championships in the National Intercollegiate Rugby Association and was named to the NIRA All-American team all three years, and in 2017 received the MA Sorensen Award, given to the nation’s top collegiate women’s rugby player. While in college she was selected for the United States national rugby team and made her debut in 2018 playing at a Women’s SVNS tournament in Paris.

Now, Maher is appearing in her second Olympic games and most of the internet is along for the ride. We caught up with Maher at the Team USA Summit, where we talked about social media, growing the game of rugby, and her advice for anyone hoping to become an Olympian one day.

Teen Vogue: What would be your advice to younger people hoping to compete at the Olympic level one day?

Ilona Maher: I think it would be to first off, get out there, do whatever it is you want to do — whatever sport it is just go try it. I was always a big fan of trying many sports out. You want to play a sport that you’ll continue to love and that you won’t grow tired of. I think that’s really important. People who played a sport from an early age can get sick of it, so I always say to try out as many sports that you love and then you can really specialize down the line. But keep the love for it and make sure you have things outside of it that make it feel worth it.

TV: And on the flip side, what’s the best advice you’ve ever received?

IM: My middle school basketball coach, he almost always said this, but we were on the line one day during practice and he said, “I saw a quote in the newspaper that said: Respect all, fear none.” And that became our quote of the season. It’s really stuck with me.

TV: Something my father grew up telling me constantly was that it’s important, no matter what you do, to have a winner’s mindset. What does a “winner’s mindset” mean to you?

IM: I don’t know if I have that. (She laughs) I think its means that you’re prepared to do whatever it takes to win. In my sport, you’re prepared to chase back that tackle even though you’re dog tired. You’re prepared to put your body on the line and make that tackle because that is what your team needs.