Barbie teams with Ilona Maher to help keep girls in sports
Rugby star Ilona Maher is a two-time Olympian, a “Dancing With the Stars” alum, a social media favorite and now a Barbie doll.
Mattel announced Monday that it has assembled a team of four international rugby athletes to help encourage girls to build confidence and stay in the sport. The new “Team Barbie” campaign aims to celebrate the International Day of the Girl Child on October 11.
“We all doubt ourselves sometimes, myself included,” Maher said in a statement. “If sharing my story can inspire other young girls to believe in themselves the way I did, then I will have truly made an impact. Being part of Team Barbie shows girls that confidence is not something to be feared, but something to have.”
Also on the team are Barbie Ellie Kildunne from the United Kingdom, New Zealander Portia Woodman-Wickliffe and Nassira Konde from France.
A star of the Paris 2024 Olympics even before the rugby sevens team’s historic bronze medal, Maher became known for his social media videos that offered a humorous insight into the daily life of an Olympic athlete. She has also used her platform to empower women, advocate for body positivity, and help raise the profile of rugby in the United States.
Barbie doll versions of international rugby stars Ellie Kildunne, left, Ilona Maher, Nassira Konde and Portia Woodman-Wickliffe.
(Mattel)
“As women, our bodies have often been this object to look at and objectify, and I hate that there are girls who feel like they don’t have a purpose for their body, and so they want to constantly change it,” Maher told the Times last year. “Getting into a sport and a sport like rugby, a sport like canoeing and athletics gives your body a purpose, shows what it can do and what it’s capable of. It’s not just something for other people to judge.”
As part of its campaign, Mattel conducted a study to try to better understand why girls tend to stop playing sports. Research found that only 53% of girls aged 6 to 14 feel confident when playing sport and that one in three girls stop playing sport at 14 “mainly due to body confidence issues, self-doubt and a lack of visible female role models”.
“At Barbie’s… [w]“We are committed to breaking down the barriers – from gender stereotypes to self-doubt – that prevent girls from realizing their limitless potential,” said Krista Berger, senior vice president of Barbie, in a press release for the new campaign. “By showcasing the stories of incredible role models whose confidence has fueled unprecedented success, we’re showing girls that the future of sports – or wherever their passion takes them – is theirs, with Team Barbie cheering them on.”
The Team Barbie campaign is not the first time the company has put athletes in the spotlight. Last year, Barbie teamed up with WNBA icon Sue Bird as part of her 65th birthday celebration. Barbie has also teamed up with the Chicago Sky for Barbie-themed game days for the past two WNBA seasons.
Other female athletes highlighted by Barbie last year included tennis player Venus Williams, soccer stars Christine Sinclair and Mary Fowler, boxer Estelle Mossely, gymnasts Alexa Moreno and Rebeca Andrade, paratriathlete Susana Rodriguez, swimmer Federica Pellegrini and sprinter athletics Ewa Swoboda.
