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Ilona Maher joins superstars like Sabrina Carpenter in Time100 Next list
By Finn Morton
Ilona Maher continues to break new ground as a role model for women and athletes worldwide. The Paris Olympics may have been just over two months ago, but the bronze medallist continues to reach new heights by inspiring a global audience.
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Maher announced on social media that she has been included in Time100 Next. This list of names from Time Magazine aims to recognise the 100 people who, as editor-in-chief Sam Jacobs explained, “Are not waiting long in life to make an impact.”
Without going through all 100 names, this is a really impressive list that covers so many fields and areas of influence. Pop singer Sabrina Carpenter has been selected on the same list as Maher, as has last year’s NBA Finals MVP Jaylen Brown.
Earlier this year, two-time Rugby World Cup-winning Springboks captain Siya Kolisi was recognised by the magazine as one of the world’s top 100 most influential people in 2024. Trevor Noah wrote a brief but powerful passage about what makes Kolisi so unique.
Just as Kolisi was then, the recognition that Maher has received from Time will no doubt be celebrated by the rugby community. The American is almost at four million followers on Instagram – keep in mind, the All Blacks have 2.6 million.
After rugby sevens’ final day at the Olympics, this writer wrote about how Maher’s bronze medal was a win for rugby. Throughout the Games, there were countless TikTok’s online of women and girls, who had never watched the sport before, who were in tears watching their TVs.
Maher had captured the interest, confidence and appreciation of people new to rugby union through candid videos online and a passionate approach to the game on the field. As three-time Olympic medallist Lindsey Vonn wrote, “Ilona is all of us.”
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“It’s about time we all paid attention to a woman like Ilona Maher! Many women, including myself, have tried to advocate for strong women of all shapes and sizes, but Ilona has taken that to a whole new level,” Vonn wrote for Time.
“She represents not just physical strength but also what internal confidence looks like. Her Paris Olympics journey was unmissable online, and it’s clear why. She is open, honest and unafraid to tell people how it is.
“She works hard, shows her muscles, recently posed for the cover of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit, and ate a giant croissant in Paris that I was very jealous of. Ilona is all of us.
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“In a social media world of fake perfection and judgment, Ilona is showing the next generation of women that every shape and size can be both strong and beautiful.
“That Ilona was part of the team that won the first U.S. Olympic medal in Women’s Rugby Sevens is just one of the many reasons we love her.”
Maher’s popularity has grown even more during this year’s season of Dancing with the Stars in the United States. The American also recently interviewed Captain Marvel star Brie Larson, which just goes to show how significant Maher’s audience is now.
