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Fans react to Olympic medalist’s possible addition to squad

Fans react to Olympic medalist’s possible addition to squad

Fans react to Olympic medalist’s possible addition to squad
DWTS fans believe a star from Team USA’s medal-winning rugby team could join Season 33. Photo credit: NBC

Before each season of Dancing With the Stars, the fun part for fans is trying to figure out which celebrities will be cast.

As Season 33 approaches, fans are speculating and excited about whether a popular Olympic medalist will join the cast.

The program has previously featured Olympic stars such as Laurie Hernandez, Kristi Yamaguchi, Shawn Johnson, Adam Rippon and Apolo Anton Ohno.

Each celebrity contestant has also shown their dedication to working tirelessly towards a goal by winning their own season of DWTS — medals in the case of the Olympics and the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy in the case of DWTS.

Gymnast Simone Biles, track and field star Noah Lyles and NBA superstar LeBron James are all set to compete in the 2024 Summer Games in Paris, France, but it appears none of them will be competing on the dance television show.



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Instead, fans saw a hint that revealed a well-known rugby star would be joining the cast of DWTS Season 33.

American Olympic star could join DWTS Season 33

Some online sleuths noticed that American rugby union star Ilona Maher is a fan of Dancing With the Stars after following her Instagram account recently. That doesn’t necessarily mean Maher is on the show, but it could be a sign.

A Reddit post about Maher possibly joining Season 33 of the dance competition has fans excited.

“Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah ,” one commenter said, seemingly approving of Maher’s casting.

“Please please please be Artem’s partner. I just think they’ll get along,” another commenter said.

“I wouldn’t vote him down so quickly ,” said another Reddit comment.

One person said Maher would be “so much fun” and that she was “a really badass woman.”

Screenshot from Reddit showing fans reacting to potential season 33 cast member
Photo credit: u/teddivan96/Reddit

For those who missed it, Maher was part of the USA Women’s Rugby Team that won the bronze medal by beating Australia at the Olympic Games.

He is also a social media star with millions of followers across his Instagram and TikTok profiles. In late July, Planet Rugby reported that Maher had officially become the most followed rugby player, surpassing Siya Kolisi.

Maher is 27 years old and was born in Burlington, Vermont. The 5-foot-10-inch rugby star attended Quinnipiac University in New Haven, Connecticut.

She went viral with her TikTok videos ahead of the Olympics and continued to make headlines during the Games. One of her latest videos showed NFL legend Tom Brady meeting her in Paris and taking a selfie with her.

DWTS Season 33 cast rumors continue

As of this writing, there is no official word on the cast of Dancing With the Stars for Season 33. An announcement is likely to be made on ABC’s Good Morning America in the coming weeks.

It was previously reported that WNBA star Caitlin Clark was an athlete that DWTS wanted on the cast, but Clark turned down several major offers.

Other names rumored to be in the cast include former GMA stars Amy Robach, TJ Holmes and retired NFL star Jason Kelce, according to The US Sun.

So far, the DWTS cast includes host Alfonso Ribeiro, co-host Julianne Hough, and judges Bruno Tonioli, Derek Hough, and Carrie Ann Inaba, among the names fans can definitely expect to see in season 33.

The 33rd season of Dancing With the Stars premieres on Tuesday, September 17 at 8 p.m. on ABC and Disney+.