"It's OK to believe you deserve something because you put in the work for it," Ilona Maher said in the viral clip.

From Paris 2024 and the SI Swimsuit cover to “Dancing with the Stars” and a contract with the Bristol Bears, Ilona Maher’s life has changed dramatically in less than a year. She tells CNN how it feels to become “America’s sweetheart.

Maher included a video of herself holding up a bag of ice to her face. She also lip-synched, “Been better, Carrie Ann.” (The athlete previously said the phrase last year after Dancing With The Stars judge Inaba asked why Maher was crying after she received tough feedback on her performance.)

Olympic rugby star Ilona Maher is on the mend after a rough collision during a recent match with her new team, the Bristol Bears.

Ilona Maher says that rugby union has to shift culture and mindset if it is going to evolve as a sport. With more than eight million followers across Instagram and TikTok, 28-year-old American international back Maher is the world’s most followed rugby player on social media.

Interviewer asks Ilona Maher how she deals with imposter syndrome. Source: CNN

You automatically assume I must not feel that I am deserving of where I’m at? ... You think they’re asking NFL players, male politicians if they have imposter syndrome?’