Ilona Maher DWTS appearance: How the Olympic rugby star conquered social media in her debut on ‘Dancing with the Stars’
Ilona Maher started the 33rd season of “Dancing with the Stars” with a bang on Tuesday evening.
At the debut of the 33rd season of the popular dance competition show, 13 new contestants introduced themselves to the audience with their coaches and performed their first dance.
Ilona Maher wasn’t a household name in 2024. But she captained the U.S. Olympic Rugby Team and became a social media darling during the Summer Games, with her humor at the heart of her content. Maher cemented her fame with her powerful, stiff arms against her opponents, helping Team USA to a historic bronze medal.
Since the Olympics, she has been capitalizing on her newfound fame – including at the Emmy Awards earlier this week, where she interviewed celebrities on the red carpet.
Let’s take a look at how Maher performed on her first episode of DWTS.
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Ilona Maher’s DWTS performance video
The theme of the first episode of Dancing with the Stars was personal anthems. Maher danced to “Man, I Feel Like a Woman,” an iconic song by country singer Shania Twain – and a fitting choice for Maher, a strong, athletic woman who wants to be an icon for young girls and expand their idea of what femininity can look like.
Maher was a little nervous during her dance. While she is strong enough to compete, her flexibility was questioned.
Eventually, Maher relaxed and loosened up, and the judges awarded her a score of 18, which made her cry with joy.
The breast bang, I have to giggle #DWTS pic.twitter.com/ShTTeYNzQL
-Lauren 🌻 I miss Josh (@justlovebassett) 18 September 2024
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Who is Ilona Maher’s DWTS partner?
Alan Bertsen, Maher’s coach and dance partner, is a professional Latin and ballroom dancer. He is no newcomer to televised dance competitions, having previously appeared on season 10 of “So You Think You Can Dance.”
Maher has a successful coach, as Bersten won season 28 of DTWS with former Bachelorette star Hannah Brown. Bertsen started on the show as a background dancer in season 20, but became an official coach in season 25 and has been paired with someone every season since.
We did it!!!!!! Our first dance was so much fun! @ilona_maher is so special and we will continue to work so hard!!! Please vote for us!! Please text “ILONA” ten times to 21523!!!!!
And go to https://t.co/8XBlAbX6rj
— Alan Bersten (@Dance10Alan) 18 September 2024
MORE: Walk-off victory secures historic finish for US rugby at Paris Olympics
How old is Ilona Maher?
Maher was born in Burlington, Vermont in 1996. The 28-year-old grew up in Vermont and lived there until attending Quinnipiac University, where she studied nursing. Maher also received her MBA from DeVry University in 2022.
She played rugby for Quinnipiac and has been a member of the US national team since 2018.
