Who is Ilona Maher? Parents and All about rugby star as she wins 2025 ESPY breakthrough athlete award

Ilona maher, a rugby player for the Bristol Bears, recently received the 2025 Breakthrough Athlete Award at the ESPY Awards. The ceremony, held on July 16, featured many sports icons on stage. After accepting her award, Ilona Maher thanked her family during her speech saying:

"I want to say thank you of course, my family, to my dad for driving hours to my basketball practice, and taking me to early morning pitching clinics. You know, sports does amazing things. You know for a girl, who did not understand why her body looked the way it did. Sports gave me an outlet and showed me how capable I can be. To my mom, to always makes me worthy and seen, who always lends a ear to listen. To my sisters, who are my biggest fans and biggest supporters, always trying to lift me up."

Maher, who rose to fame in 2020 after joining the US National Rugby team, was seen wearing a beautiful backless dress as she walked down the red carpet at the ESPY Awards, where she was nominated for the first time.

More about Ilona Maher, as rugby player wins Breakthrough Athlete Award

Ilona Maher, whose full name is Ilona Delsing Rosa Maher, was born on August 12, 1996, to parents Mineke Maher-Beukenkamp and Michael Maher, who married in 1993. According to People Magazine, she grew up in Vermont with her siblings, with whom she shares a close bond. Her older sister, Olivia, allegedly started the trend of "girl dinner" on social media, while her younger sister, Adriana, works with a nonprofit organization.

Talking about her sisters in an interview with the outlet, she said:

"They are so supportive. They'll go all over the world and watch me play rugby and wear the weirdest shirts or scream the loudest and do the funniest things."

Ilona Maher engaged in various sports from a young age and later graduated in 2018 from Quinnipiac University in Connecticut with a nursing degree. She subsequently attended DeVry University to pursue a degree in business administration. According to Hello! Magazine, Ilona's mother works as a registered nurse, and her father is a former rugby player for St Michael's College. In a 2024 interview with WCAX, Mineke Maher-Beukenkamp expressed her pride in her daughters, especially Ilona. She said:

"I have the honor of being the mother of three amazing children, but also have the extra, you know, label of being an Olympian's mother, [which] is very cool. Having Ilona be an advocate for mental health, ultimately, you know, body positivity…I think it's amazing,"

She further added:

"Just watching the team and your daughter run out onto the field is exhilarating. I get very nervous because you want always the very, very best for your child."

Ilona Maher, a long-time advocate for body positivity, appeared on "Dancing With The Stars" last year, where she finished second. During her appearance on "Good Morning America," she discussed the different labels she tries to define herself by, saying:

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"You can be so much more than people put you in the box as. I’m an amazing athlete and I’m a very strong athlete but I also felt like through this I could show I’m a very beautiful dancer and elegant dancer. I can also be smart and whatever else I want to be."

Ilona Maher, who has represented Team USA twice at the Olympics, won the bronze medal last year at the 2024 Paris Olympics. She is now scheduled to appear in the Women's Rugby World Cup, which will take place in the UK next month.

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