Watch Ilona Maher Send Inspiring Message About Body Positivity to Girls and Women

The Olympian, SI Swimsuit cover girl and ‘Dancing With the Stars’ runner-up makes waves with every new endeavor.

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

Ilona Maher is inspiring a generation of young women with every new endeavor. The Olympic rugby player, who brought home Team USA’s first bronze medal for Rugby sevens at the Paris games earlier this year, was just named runner-up on season 33 of Dancing With the Stars.

The SI Swimsuit cover girl, who landed on the cover of the September digital issue, has become America’s Sweetheart for her sense of humor on the show and online, her uplifting, candid body positive content and her signature hashtag Beast Brains Beauty. She is constantly proving that women really can do it all, and it was a goal for her to continue her powerful message while on the reality TV show. Now that the season is over and her impact is clear, we can confidently say she went above and beyond.

“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,” the Vermont native, who now lives in San Diego, said while on Good Morning America today, alongside the other finalists including partner and professional choreographer Alan Bersten and Mirror Ball champions Joey Graziadei and Jenna Johnson.

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GMA shared the 28-year-old’s sweet live TV quote and video on Instagram, and tons of fans ran to the comments to share how much they loved and appreciated seeing her on their screens each week.

“A real life icon 👏🔥😍,” one fan chimed.

Maher often gushed about how close she has grown to Bersten over the course of the season, but also noted how much of a community the show really is.

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“Dancing With the Stars is such a family, it’s such a family show, and also, like, we are a family on the show, whether it’s the pros or celebrities,” she told SI Swimsuit at an event at the Dante Beverly Hills earlier this year. Her friends came out to celebrate the magazine’s 60th anniversary and her cover shoot in Bellport, NY. “So to have them here supporting me, there is no question that they’d want to be here. So it’s amazing.“

For her final performance last night, a freestyle dance, Maher aptly chose a cover of “Femininomenon” by Chappell Roan and she rightfully received her first perfect score, a 10 from each of the judges, Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli and Derek Hough.