Rugby center Ilona Maher has been spending a lot of time with her team preparing for the 2024 Paris Olympics. The two-time Olympian will be representing the United States with a host of other elite athletes for a second time in a row and is looking forward to potentially bringing home some gold. “We didn't win a medal [in Tokyo], and that really crushed me,” she tells Women’s Health. “But I am excited to see what Paris can do…I just think it'll be different.”
It’s not difficult to spot Maher on and off the field thanks to the signature red lip she sports regularly. Her long-time favorite product is Maybelline’s Super Stay Matte Ink, which is highly pigmented and budge-proof. “I'm tackling, and I have a mouth guard, so it's rubbing—whenever I run, my lip kind of goes underneath my mouth guard,” she says. “It stays on perfectly.”
For Maher, her bold choice of lipstick allows her to bring her brand of femininity to the field. While she's aware of stereotypes that paint women who play sports as masculine, she’s never allowed those ideas to shift her reality. “I don't like this idea that you have to drop your femininity to play a sport like rugby or any sport,” she says. “Even though I'm out on the field running through people and stiff-arming, I've always felt feminine.” It's why her go-to hashtag on social media, #beastbeautybrains, is one that she hopes speaks to women who don’t want to be put into a box and champions them for being multifaceted.
Speaking of which, Maher isn’t just a trailblazer in rugby, she’s also making waves in the beauty industry with the launch of her new skincare collection called Medalist—a line created by athletes for athletes. Her co-founder is D1 swimmer Ann Ragan Kearns who, like Maher, has a deep understanding of what athletes need in and out of whatever sport they play. “We wanted to create a brand that makes them feel good and powerful [to] give them that confidence to come off the field and feel fresh and ready to go,” says Maher.
And in case you were wondering, Maher already has her favorites. She’s a big fan of the Medalist Game Face Clear Skin And Cooling Hydrating Spray. “I spray it on just off the field and even as a primer before I put my makeup on,” she says. “It's very hydrating, and it's been cool to be in product development and learn about it.” She also loves the brand's Clean Sweep Cooling And Cleansing Wipes and No Fric Stick Anti-Chafe Balm.
Medalist Game Face Clear Skin And Cooling Hydrating Spray
Medalist Clean Sweep Cooling And Cleansing Wipes
Medalist No Fric Stick Anti-Chafe Balm
Medalist The Locker Room Essentials Collections
To get the right formulas, Maher and Kearns went above and beyond by surveying a variety of athletes to determine what needed to be prioritized. “I knew that field athletes would want to get off the field, wipe off the sweat, and wipe off the sunscreen,” says Maher. “Whereas my co-founder, who’s in the pool all day, doesn't feel the same way. She wants something more hydrating.”
With Olympic rugby matches coming up on July 28th, you can cheer on Team USA while enjoying the latest product drops. Happy shopping!
Sabrina is an editorial assistant for Women’s Health. When she’s not writing, you can find her running, training in mixed martial arts, or reading.
