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.

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

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.)

The USA Eagles player is also not worried about a potential U.S. ban on TikTok, a platform she has amassed over three million followers on.

Rugby star Ilona Maher is laughing through the pain as she continues to recover from a broken nose sustained during her first home start with the Bristol Bears. The Olympic bronze

An hour later, Maher shared a video of herself holding the same bag of ice, now melted, to her face as she lip-synced to audio from her DWTS run when, after judge Carrie Ann Inaba asked if she was OK, she responded, “been better, Carrie Ann.”

U.S. rugby star Ilona Maher has celebrated her first start for the Bristol Bears by powering over for a try in a 41-31 victory at the Exeter Chiefs.