Ilona Maher Drops Slow-Mo SI Swimsuit Video That’s Total Main Character Energy

The Bristol Bears player and two-time SI Swimsuit model continues to serve inspiration to fans across the globe.

Ilona Maher was photographed by Ben Watts in Bellport, New York / Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

Olympic rugby player Ilona Maher continues to deliver a daily dose of motivation we all need. Between her first season with the Bristol Bears, her new podcast House of Maher alongside her sisters and her upcoming appearance in the 2025 SI Swimsuit issue, this 28-year-old superstar is on a major roll. Plus, she joined the USA rugby team last week for a history-making game, setting a new attendance record with 10,518 fans in the stands.

Needless to say, Maher is totally crushing it and her fans—us included—love to follow along with her latest updates. On Instagram, the Vermont native has continued to share teasers from her latest SI Swimsuit shoot, seeing her travel to Bermuda where she posed for Ben Watts’s lens. The magazine announced her return last week.

Embracing how much of an inspiration she’s been to her fanbase—from her athletic achievements to her body positivity advocacy and her stint on reality TV—Maher took to Instagram to share a behind the scenes clip from her shoot day with SI Swimsuit. Set to the song “Father Figure” by George Michael, which saw a resurgence in popularity with the release of the 2024 film Babygirl, the Olympic bronze medalist went full supermodel, even slowing down the speed as she strutted her stuff.

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A post shared by Ilona Maher (@ilonamaher)

“Ready to be what my fans need 🫡,” Maher captioned the post shared with her 4.9 million followers. In the video, she can be seen wearing a black cut-out cheeky strapless one-piece from netta, featuring silver hoop accents throughout the middle. Her hair is thrown up in a messy bun, held together by a pretty multi-colored scarf from MANGO. As expected, many flocked to her comments section to applaud her latest share.

“Rugby body here—thanks for normalizing strong women!” one fan wrote.

“If I had this body I’d be insufferable!” another humorously added.

“Love the positive role model that you are for my 16 yr old daughter who just played her first rugby game! Thanks for being an inspiration. 👏(And btw, you look absolutely incredible.),” a third fan wrote.

Maher made her SI Swimsuit debut as the second-ever digital cover star last September, traveling to Bellport, N.Y. for an unforgettable shoot with photographer Ben Watts. This year marks her first appearance in the physical magazine.

While on set for this year’s shoot, Maher shared what she hoped readers would get out of her second year with the magazine. “I hope people see my photos and understand that strength can be so beautiful and so feminine,” she said. “And there’s so many different body types, and all are really made for the swimsuit."

Pre-order the 2025 SI Swimsuit issue here and buy tickets for our members-only Social Club event, happening May 16-17, here.

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