ELLIE BOATMAN TALKS BODY IMAGE, GISELLE MATHER AND THE ROAD TO PARIS

Ellie Boatman could become an Olympian in Paris later this year but for now she has more pressing concerns much closer to home.

Trailfinders Women star Boatman is hoping to be among the 13 names selected to represent Team GB at rugby sevens as the women’s team pursue a maiden Olympic medal.

Should she make the cut, it will be a potentially glorious end to what has been a long and seldom straightforward path to Paris that has seen Boatman face challenges on and off the pitch.

As well as balancing the demands of her ambitious club side against sevens tournaments across the globe, the 26-year-old has also battled an eating disorder but Boatman revealed it is her journey that is helping to keep everything in perspective ahead of what she hopes will be a golden summer.

Into the semis 🔥

A tight 7-0 win vs Canada puts us into the semifinals pic.twitter.com/dKcjysQ1Vq

— GB Rugby Sevens (@GBRugbySevens) January 27, 2024

“My relationship with food has always been tricky from a young age," said Boatman. 

"Throughout my teenage years I was surrounded by negative relationships with food and the era I grew up in was all about being as skinny as possible and dieting all the time.

“I got really sucked into that but it probably took control of my life when I moved to university.”

Boatman made the relatively short trip from her family base in Camberley to study at Southampton but could not have felt further from home in her new surroundings. 

“I had quit rugby and it was the first time I'd been in complete control of my own food and my own environment,” she recalled. 

“There were no parents or adults telling me what I needed to eat and I was massively over-exercising. I couldn't see how small I was getting.

“There was a point in my eating disorder where I couldn't have things like peanut butter in the house because I'd want to binge on that.”

Encouraged by her friends and family, Boatman sought the help of a therapist. 

Around the same time she started to play rugby again and a return to the sport she first played at the age of four helped trigger a change in mindset. 

“I knew that if I didn't eat enough or didn't gain weight and wasn't getting any stronger that I wouldn't be able to play at the level I wanted to,” she said. 

“That provided the motivation but also having that goal ensured I wasn’t just training to look a certain way or solely for aesthetics. 

“It was a case of training for a purpose – to get stronger and faster.”

Boatman kept her struggles private for some time but in February 2022 she shared a video on social media explaining her relationship with body image.  

Body image is a bit of a taboo topic in sport but I can happily say rugby has made me the happier, healthier, stronger version of me. A little bit about my own body image struggles ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/EKvfsGlilo

— Ellie Boatman (@EllieBoatman) February 9, 2022

Overwhelmed by the response, she was determined to put her platform as a sporting star to good use. 

“So many people reached out to me and it wasn't just other girls, it was parents and coaches and I think from there I just thought I need to speak out,” she said. 

“A lot more people were struggling than I necessarily realised.

“I felt so alone and so ashamed and you feel like you're the only person in the world going through it but you don't realise how many other people are feeling the same. 

“It's so important for me now to help people because I don't want anyone to feel like they are alone.”

That led Boatman to teaming up with master practitioner Elle Mace for the ‘Beyond the Scale’ project which sees the pair deliver educational talks to sport clubs, while the 26-year-old also runs her own online coaching programme. 

“I’ve put something in place where I can actually help further and not just speak about it now, because in the past no one really spoke about this with sport, especially female sport,” she said. 

Beyond The Scale 💗

A little back story for the motivations behind this project ⬇️⬇️ pic.twitter.com/Mmn6A5sDEq

— Ellie Boatman (@EllieBoatman) January 17, 2024

“The fact that someone else might take something from that, I’m proud of what I’ve done.

“I'm no longer embarrassed or ashamed about it.”

While Boatman's off-field profile expands rapidly, her standing within the game continues to rise. 

She is working with Trailfinders head coach Giselle Mather again following her move from Harlequins and admits it was hard to resist a reunion following a fruitful and supportive partnership at Wasps. 

“I remember when I first spoke about body image, Giselle was very complimentary and said that's really good of you to speak out,” said Boatman. 

“Harlequins is obviously a really amazing environment and programme so to leave that to come to Ealing was quite a big decision to make. 

💬 "It's exciting to see talent from all corners of the world coming together to start something new and be part of history"@EllieBoatman reflects on @TrailfindersW's debut and looks towards their first ever home game 🏡

Read by clicking below ⬇️#PWR | @allianzuknews

— Premiership Women's Rugby (@ThePWR) October 10, 2023

“But I think your relationship with your coach is massive and a massive part of your journey as a rugby player. 

“I knew that if I moved to a club Giselle was at, it might improve my rugby even more.”

The decision was made with one eye on this summer’s Games and while Boatman isn’t losing sight of the bigger picture, she is determined to grace the greatest stage of all. 

“It's obviously a big goal and it's the highlight of our sevens season and something we're talking about every week when we go into training,” she added. 

“But I try not to make it my entire identity because I'm very aware that selection is still live and staying injury free is my sole focus. 

“I’m working as hard as I can so I can hopefully call myself an Olympian, and if we were to medal it would mean absolutely everything.”

If you’re worried about your own or someone else’s health, you can contact Beat, the UK’s eating disorder charity, on 0808 801 0677 or beateatingdisorders.org.uk