Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham, Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier, and Team USA sprinter Melissa Jefferson-Wooden are among the athlete models featured in the 2026 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.
All three were photographed by Katherine Goguen on Captiva Island, Florida. Cunningham's shoot took place specifically at the South Seas Resort, and she marked the occasion on Instagram with the caption "year 1 with @si_swimsuit, AHHHH!"
"I truly do think, like, go kick ass out on the court, and then go kick ass out in the real world being a woman who is strong, who is powerful and who has a mindset that she can do anything." Cunningham told Sports Illustrated.
The Fever guard returned to Indiana this season on a one-year contract after a season-ending MCL tear in her right knee last year, during which she averaged 8.6 points and 3.5 rebounds per game while shooting 43% from three in 30 appearances. Teammate Caitlin Clark liked Cunningham's SI post, Lexie Hull commented "I mean like…" with heart-eye emojis, and world No. 1 golfer Nelly Korda dropped an "Okkkk" with a fire emoji.
Collier, entering her eighth season with the Lynx, has made three straight All-WNBA first teams and two straight All-Defensive first teams. She was named the WNBA Defensive Player of the Year in 2024, finished runner-up in the MVP race the past two seasons, and was MVP of the Unrivaled league's inaugural season, which she cofounded with Breanna Stewart.
In her caption, Collier wrote, “This was such an amazing opportunity. Grateful for everyone involved in making my dreams come true ✨ 2026 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue now out! #SISwim26.”
Jefferson-Wooden captured gold in the 4x100-meter relay at the 2024 Paris Olympics and at last year's world championships in Tokyo swept the 100-meter, 200-meter, and 4x100-meter relay, becoming the second woman to win that sprint triple at a world championship. She praised the SI Swimsuit opportunity on Instagram and claimed she would add “model” to her résumé.
“The one thing I’ve learned about my journey, is to never put my limitations on myself or allow anyone’s opinion of what I do and don’t deserve dictate what I do,” she captioned her post in Instagram. “Never in a million years did I think I’d have an opportunity to be featured in @si_swimsuit , yet here I stand 🥹.”
She added, “Special thank you to the SI team for creating a space for me to feel comfortable, confident, and beautiful throughout the whole shoot , even wrapping me in blankets and towels because it was so cold.”
