Fashion
Who’s Winning Internet Gold at the Olympics?
As the world watches the Paris Olympic Games, figures like Pommel Horse Guy, a muffin-obsessed swimmer and a few charismatic shooters have become unexpected stars online.
At the Olympic Games, there are the athletes who are rewarded with medals. And then there are the athletes who, for whatever reasons, find themselves rewarded with online love.
Here’s a roundup of the stars of the Games, at least according to the internet.
The Women’s Rugby Player Who Recruited an N.F.L. Star
Before the Games began, the American women’s rugby sevens team already had a social media sensation: Ilona Maher, who has 2 million followers on TikTok and 2.3 million on Instagram
After she jokingly asked the retired N.F.L. star Jason Kelce to be the team’s celebrity super fan, à la Flavor Flav’s sponsorship of the U.S. women’s water polo team, Kelce attended the team’s match against Australia wearing a Hawaiian shirt patterned with Maher’s face. The team secured a bronze medal, America’s first in the sport.
Much of Maher’s content promotes body positivity, as when she responded to a commenter who guessed her body mass index was 30, which would fall under the clinical definition of obese. Maher responded with a pointed burn.
“Yeah, I do have a BMI of 30,” she said in a TikTok video. “I am considered overweight. But, alas, I’m going to the Olympics and you’re not.”
