An Olympic medalist replied to criticism over her appearance on the catwalk.
On Saturday, Ilona Maher, 29, walked the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit runway during Miami Swim Week in Florida.
The professional rugby player, who helped Team USA win bronze at women’s sevens during the 2024 Paris Olympics, modeled a golden-triangle bikini and a backless striped swimsuit.
After the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit account posted a video of Maher walking the runway on Instagram, many commenters had an opinion on the “unflattering” swimsuit.
“This particular swimsuit is not flattering for her at all! Why and who picked it?” read one, while another stated, “That bathing suit doesn’t look good on her.”
Some commenters thought Maher’s swimsuit was unflattering. / Instagram/Sports Illustrated Swimsuit
One commenter wrote, “I’m going to say SI did her wrong in the suit! She’s very pretty and I’ve seen pictures of her in bikinis and they are flattering! This suit is atrocious!”
Ilona Maher walked the runway in a striped blue-and-white swimsuit at the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Runway Show on May 30 in Miami Beach, Florida. / Ivan Apfel/Getty Images
On Thursday, Maher replied to the feedback by posting a video on her Instagram and TikTok.
“I just got to walk in the SI swimsuit show, and then my runway walk was posted on Instagram. And you guys have been leaving just the best comments,” she quipped. “Like, you guys have a way with words, and you just say what you feel.”
Ilona Maher helped Team USA win bronze in women’s rugby at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Pictured here during the semi-finals, playing against New Zealand. / Phil Noble / Phil Noble/Reuters
Maher then showed a picture of herself in the swimsuit and noted that she had seen comments about how Sports Illustrated “did her dirty” with the outfit choice.
“I actually chose this one,” she said. “I chose it by myself. I kind of liked it. I liked how it showed my whole back, showed a little side titty. So I hear you with that, but this was all me.”
After revealing that the swimsuit was her choice, Maher admitted that she felt the look was not perhaps her best ever.
But, she had a message to everyone who called the look unflattering.
“Is it unflattering, or is it just, like, a bigger body existing in a suit?” Maher asked.
She said she was happy that the videos started conversations and thanked everyone who commented for making the video gain more traction.
Olympic bronze medalist Ilona Maher shares updates on her life on social media with her almost 10 million followers. / Thibaud Moritz/Pool via Reuters
Maher’s catwalk video was the most-watched and liked video from the event. At the time of writing, it has garnered over 8.7 million views and over 385,000 likes.
“I think I still inspired many people that even when you’re not at your best—although I thought I was hot—I’m still gonna show up, and show out, and flash a little side boob” she said.
Kirby Lee/Imagn Images via Reuters
Adding, “If you got a body, you got a bikini body.”
While some commenters expressed dislike of Maher’s swimsuit, most comments were positive.
Instagram/Sports Illustrated Swimsuit
The top comment on the original Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Instagram post read, “Sooo [sic] glad my girls are growing up with her as a role model.”
The comment had more than 24,000 likes.
