Olympic rugby player and ‘Dancing with the Stars’ participant Ilona Maher is close to her two sisters

Whether she participates in the Olympic Games or beyond Dancing with the starsIlona Maher’s sisters, Olivia Maher and Adrianna Maher, are always ready to cheer her on from the sidelines.

“They are so supportive,” the 2024 Olympic rugby player told PEOPLE. “They go all over the world and see me playing rugby and wearing the strangest shirts or shouting the loudest and doing the funniest things.”

Ilona and her “built-in best friends,” as she calls them, were born and raised in Burlington, Virginia by parents Michael Maher and Mieneke Maher-Beukenkamp. Olivia is the eldest, born in 1994, followed by Ilona, ​​born in 1996. Adrianna is the youngest of the three and born in 1999.

While Adrianna has invested her time in nonprofit work, Olivia has followed a similar path to her famous sister, creating comedy videos on TikTok and Instagram and even coining the viral term “girls’ dinner.”

Here’s everything you need to know about Ilona Maher’s sisters, Olivia Maher and Adrianna Maher.

They grew up in Vermont

Not long after tying the knot on June 26, 1993, Michael and Mieneke welcomed their firstborn, Olivia, on September 26, 1994. Ilona arrived a few years later on August 12, 1996 and Adrianna joined the family on April 30. 1999. The girls grew up in Burlington, Virginia, where they participated in some of the same activities.

Ilona – called ‘Lo’ by her family – wasn’t the only one of her siblings who grew up playing sports. Olivia got to witness her younger sister’s strength as a pitcher when they both participated in Little League softball.

“There was some commotion on the other field,” the elder Maher recalled to the local Vermont newspaper in 2024 Seven days. “Lo was singing and this guy yelled, ‘Tell her to slow down; no one can hit anything!’ Then my father spoke.”

Michael told the other father that he would not instruct Ilona to change her pitching. “I know what Ilona learned from that,” Olivia said. “Never soften yourself.”

Adrianna works at a human rights organization

According to her LinkedIn profile, Adrianna studied global studies, governance and human rights at Castleton University in Vermont. She currently works as an individual donation coordinator for Madre, a New York City nonprofit that advocates for women’s rights.

In her biography on the organization’s website, Adrianna wrote that her most joyful moments are “the loud and quiet ones with my loved ones, whether it’s loud laughter or being comfortable in silence.”

Olivia started the ‘girls dinner’ trend

In 2023, Olivia went viral on TikTok for sharing her standard, minimal-effort meal of cheese and bread, which she cheekily called “girls’ dinner.”

“A girl just came by here and said that in the Middle Ages, all farmers had to eat was bread and cheese and how terrible that was – and I thought this was my ideal meal,” she said in the video. “I call this ‘girls’ dinner’ or ‘medieval peasant.’ ”

Ilona confirmed that her older sister invented the ‘girls’ dinner’ during the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. The athlete told PEOPLE: “This is the inventor of Girl Dinner. She is my manager, my boss, my everything. She does it all.”

Olivia works in the entertainment sector

Like her sister Ilona, ​​Olivia also works in entertainment. Her LinkedIn profile lists her as a showrunner assistant for Apple TV+ Dickinson (starring Hailee Steinfeld as Emily Dickinson), and a post-production coordinator for Peacock’s Girls5eva (starring Busy Philipps and Sara Bareilles).

In 2023, she shifted her focus to social media as a host for Cherry bomb‘s series Girls dinner with a chef. Olivia also has her own fan base, with nearly 200,000 followers on Instagram and TikTok between them.

They tease each other on social media

Although the Maher girls regularly share their support for each other online, they are not above making a few jokes as well. In August 2024, Olivia posted a silly Instagram video of Ilona congratulating her Sports illustrated cover.

“Ilona is officially one Sports illustrated model for a swimsuit cover,” Olivia says in the video, looking at her sister. “I’m so excited about it, there’s so much to celebrate, but also a lot to celebrate for me because today my new Dyson vacuum cleaner arrives. So it’s becoming a madhouse here.”

The elder Maher captioned the video: “Success comes in many forms!!”

They cheered her on at the 2024 Olympics

The entire Maher family flew to Paris to watch Ilona compete on the women’s rugby sevens team for Team USA in the 2024 Olympics. And they didn’t just watch quietly from the sidelines. Ilona posted an Instagram video of her sisters wearing matching button-up shirts, covering her face and in patriotic colors, with the caption: “VIBES ARE HIGH.”

Olivia also shared photos on Instagram of her, Adrianna, Michael and Mieneke in their Ilona gear and captioned the montage: “First Family of the Olympics.”

“The first people I go to are definitely my sisters,” Ilona told PEOPLE in an interview about her budding career. “I hope this means I’m still in this space and can travel, and I hope my sisters come with me to do it.”

They have seen how Ilona continued to compete Dancing with the stars

Arianna and Olivia take turns sitting in the audience to support Ilona as she continues to compete DWTS with dance partner Alan Bersten. The youngest Maher shared an Instagram video of herself being “dazzled” by her sister’s new bangs in October 2024, writing in the caption “to tune in tonight to see her best bangs and a foxtrot.”

Olivia has also posted several DWTS promotions, including an Instagram video with instructions on how to vote. She even shared a sweet video of Ilona teaching her the Foxtrot in October 2024, with the caption: “What a blessing to see her excitement and joy learning something so new to her 🥹🫶🏻.”