Ilona Maher Shines Light on Women’s Rugby
Ilona Maher entered the spotlight three years ago at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics where she used social media to show what the Olympics look like for athletes behind the scenes. This year, at the age of 27, Maher represented the United States in her second Olympic games. The U.S. rugby sevens team, led by Maher, was down by five in the final seconds of the bronze medal game. The American women were backed up, just a few yards away from their own try zone (the rugby equivalent of the endzone in football). In a sheer moment of determination, Alex Sedrick scored a length-of-the-field try and booted a kick through the uprights as time expired to put the Americans up 14–12 and send them home with a bronze medal. This was the first medal ever won by the United States in women’s rugby. Maher, who has a nursing degree and a master’s degree in business, has used her social media to reshape perceptions of female athletes.
“I think the stereotype around a rugby player is this idea that you need to drop your femininity and play a very masculine, brutal sport,” Maher said in a post-game interview the day after the match in Paris. “Myself and my team and some others on the circuit like Australia and Ireland are showing that femininity. We are doing our makeup before games, wanting to feel pretty out there. But that doesn’t take away from how amazing we tackle, hit, and run. You can be those things, and the stereotypes around women’s sports should just be thrown out the window now.”
The national attention Maher and her team received grew her Instagram following to 3.8 million, making her the most followed rugby player on social media. She also has 2.3 million followers on TikTok. Maher has cemented herself as a voice for female athletes everywhere. She has her sights set on playing in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics and will no doubt continue to use her voice to challenge the stereotype that women cannot show femininity in athletics.
The Fastest Man in the World: Noah Lyles
After winning gold in the 100–meter dash at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Noah Lyles threw himself into the national spotlight. With a time of 9.83 seconds, one would think Lyles became a national talking point overnight due to his incredible performance. However, it was his comments after the race that made the most waves. In his press conference, Lyles proclaimed himself as the world champion in the 100. Lyles then questioned why NBA teams call themselves world champions.
“World champion of what? The United States?” Lyles said. “Don’t get me wrong, I love the U.S. — at times — but that ain’t the world.”
NBA stars such as Kevin Durant, Damian Lillard, and Devin Booker were quick to respond to Lyles on Instagram. He received backlash from national media outlets everywhere and you could not log onto X, formerly known as Twitter, for weeks without seeing somebody disagreeing with his opinions.
Fast forward a year, Lyles was back on the biggest stage for sprinters, the 100-meter final. Lyles advanced to the final after taking second in the semifinal, behind Oblique Seville of Jamaica. All that matters is making it to the final and Lyles did that. However, after entering the games as the favorite, skepticism was rising around Lyles moments before the final. The announcers went quiet, the stadium fell into a silence, and the starting gun fired. Lyles was in last through the first 40 meters, seventh at the halfway mark, and third at 80 meters. By the time Lyles crossed the finish line, he had gained so much ground that it was nearly impossible to tell who won in real time. In fact, the announcer proclaimed that Jamaica’s Kishane Thompson won gold. Thompson and Lyles stood feet apart awaiting to hear the decision over the stadium’s loudspeaker. Very faintly through the TV the name Noah Lyles could be heard and he instantly ripped his bid off his shirt and did not stop until he had run all the way around the track. Lyles ran a personal best of 9.784 seconds. Thompson finished in 9.789 seconds. Lyles won by five-thousandths of a second. It was the closest 100–meter final in Olympic history. Lyles runs with confidence and it was seen throughout the entire final. He stuck to his game plan even when he was last at 40 meters, he knew he could make up the ground. Now, Lyles no longer needs to just call himself a world champion, he is an Olympic champion. He is the fastest man alive.
Who is the Turkish Olympic shooter who went viral?
A gun pointed down sight, no specialized equipment, hand in pocket and unwavering confidence; the look that made Turkish shooter Yusuf Dikeç an overnight sensation.
Although Dikeç gained fame seemingly overnight, he was not a first-time Olympian. Dikeç has competed for Turkey in every summer games since 2008. The 51-year-old brought home Turkey’s first ever Olympic medal in shooting. Dikeç, along with his teammate Şevval İlayda Tarhan, won silver in mixed team 10-meter air pistol. In contrast to Dikeç, the 24-year-old Tarhan, competed with large ear defenders and a visor, in an attempt to block out as many distractions, sounds, and glare as possible. Like Dikeç, she also shot with one hand in her pocket. The claim that Dikeç was wearing no shooting gear was actually false. He was wearing yellow earplugs that were not visible in the viral photo. The following day, the pose was recreated by fellow Olympians including Mondo Duplantis, who holds the pole vault world record. Duplantis is one of the biggest stars of his generation, especially in his home country of Sweden. After winning Olympic gold and setting a world record, Duplantis mimicked Dikeç’s stance, hand in a makeshift pocket and arm up holding an imaginary gun. Dikeç quickly committed to the hype around him, reposting athletes copying his stance on his social media platforms. However, for Dikeç, the posture is nothing out of the ordinary. He said it makes him feel comfortable during competitions.
“Shooting with my hand in my pocket has nothing to do with artistry,” Dikeç told Turkish radio station Radyo GOL “I am more motivated and feel more comfortable while shooting.”. He continued that the stance “is actually about bringing the body to equilibrium and focusing and concentrating.”
Dikeç is an example of what makes the Olympics so great. Only a small percentage of the world’s population compete at the Olympics. In every sport or competition, we are seeing the best of the best. Dikeç had been competing at the Olympics for 16 years and received no major press. However, one photo along with his performance has turned his life upside down overnight. Dikeç is not done with the Olympics yet, he has his sights on 2028. “I hope next [Olympics] in Los Angeles [for] a gold medal,” Dikeç said in an interview with AP News.
