'Just a question' – Olympic sensation Ilona Maher makes huge career decision but already has one problem
12/03/2024 12:07 PM
The Bristol Bears have secured a statement signing in US rugby star Ilona Maher.
An Olympic medallist, who boasts 3.3 million followers on TikTok and a further 4.6 million on Instagram, Maher is swapping sevens for 15s in the new year.
She announced her move to the Premiership Women’s Rugby league on Monday in a video filmed at Ashton Gate, the home of the Bears.
“I’m so excited to join the Bristol Bears and play with and against some of the best rugby players in the world,” Maher, who has featured as a center and prop in 7s, said.
“Just a question… is it going to be this cold the whole time? It’s a little chilly.”
In Maher, the Bears have signed one of the biggest names in women’s sport, and the most-followed rugby player in the world online.
France’s Antoine Dupont, who is among the most famous stars in the men’s game, only has around 1.1 million Instagram followers, in comparison.
Maher rose to fame during the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, where she often posted amusing TikTok videos from the Olympic Village as the Covid pandemic restricted fans and family members from attending in-person.
On the field at the Games, she scored three tries.
Her star continued to grow after Tokyo, and she reached the semifinals of the 2022 Rugby World Cup Sevens in Cape Town, where the US were beaten by eventual winners Australia.
Maher went on to compete at this summer’s Olympics too, and was part of the team that won the US its first-ever rugby sevens medal.
Team USA grabbed the bronze in Paris with a jaw-dropping late try by first-time Olympian Alex Sedrick in the final seconds of the game to beat Australia 14-12.
It marked the first medal in 7s for the Americans. The last time they won a medal in the sport was in 1924 when the men's team won gold in 15s.
Following the Olympics, Maher’s profile was further boosted by an appearance on Dancing with the Stars.
Partnered with Alan Bersten, she became the first rugby player to compete on the show and the first female in history to lift her male partner.
Maher and Bersten reached the finale of Dancing with the Stars in November, and finished as the runners-up.
Despite spending all that time in the spotlight, Maher has admitted her move to England has left her feeling like a ‘nervous schoolgirl’.
“I do feel like the first day of school, I am nervous, I don't know everybody,” she told The Guardian after arriving in Bristol.
“It is a stressful thing and it is outside of my comfort zone but I think this is exactly what I love to do and I like to challenge myself in this way.”
One of the main reasons behind her decision to swap 7s for 15s is the 2025 Rugby World Cup, which will be held in England.
The USA have qualified for the tournament and have been drawn against the hosts, Australia and Samoa in the pool stage.
If she impresses in Bristol, Maher will put herself in contention to represent her national team next summer.
“I want to put myself in the best position to hopefully be selected for the World Cup,” she said.
“I have been in the USA 7s for six years now. So I wanted to try something different, go and live somewhere else, meet new people.”
