Maddi Levi: ‘I’m not the only one who suffers with self-doubt’

Maddi Levi has emerged as Australia’s top women’s rugby sevens player with an eye on playing a starring role with the Wallaroos. Photograph: Jessica Hromas/The Guardian

Pressure on Maddi Levi, Australia’s best women’s rugby sevens player, had been building. In a whirlwind four years she had swiftly progressed from D-grade teams in Queensland, through a brief stint in AFLW, to an Olympic Games and recognition from World Rugby as one of the best female athletes in the world.

But as her feats grew, so did her own expectations. Finally, before the first stop of the 2023 season just over a year ago, the tears flowed in a meeting in a Dubai hotel room with the Australian team’s psychologist.