Kate Upton Earns Cover of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue for Third Time

Magazine's iconic issue also features Christie Brinkley, Simone Biles and more stars

By Francesca Bacardi Feb 15, 2017 5:39 AMTags

And the cover goes to...Kate Upton!

For the third time in her modeling history, the supermodel earned the front page of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue. During Tuesday night's Valentine's Day edition of Jimmy Kimmel Live, the late-night host showed this year's three covers featuring Kate. 

"Is that really a swimsuit that you're wearing?" Jimmy Kimmel joked. "Because it seems just like a hammock that got torn to bits." Kate added while laughing, "I'm pretty sure it's just a rope. It's apparently Sports Illustrated nude magazine." 

The debut comes only one day after the reveal of pregnant Hannah Jeter's photo that appears inside the magazine. It's the 26-year-old's fifth time appearing in the magazine, but she graced the cover of the 2015 issue. Jeter's sexy photo was taken only a few weeks after she learned she was eating for two.

Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated
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Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue 50th Anniversary Party

Also appearing in this year's issue are Olympians Simone Biles and Aly Raisman. The gymnasts swapped their leotards for several different bikinis in a previously released video that showed them flaunting their flexibility and strength. Despite the outfit changes, these two posed in a way that proves they're always in a gymnastics frame of mind.

Christie Brinkley, 63, also appears in the 2017 issue but turned it into a family affair. The iconic model posed in a black one-piece next to daughters Alexa Ray Joel and Sailor Brinkley Cook. Sailor shared the image on Instagram and opened up about how this project became more important than a simple photo shoot.

"I've had issues with my body image since before I can even remember. I grew up not loving how I looked and felt held back because of it," Sailor shared on Instagram. "My body and I have been through it all. But recently I have been liberated. I am healthy, I treat myself well, and for that I'm happy."

The 18-year-old continued, "This is more than a magazine to me and always has been. As a growing young woman, SI showed me all bodies are different and all bodies are worthy of celebrating. Thank you thank you @si_swimsuit for celebrating my beautiful mama, my beautiful sister, I, and ALL WOMEN!! How lucky am i?!" 

Last year's Swimsuit Issue had not one, but three different women cover the magazine, each with a different body type. Ronda Rousey, Ashley Graham and Hailey Clauson each received her own cover, with a source telling E! News at the time that the publication's choice was a "nod to female empowerment."

Graham returns to this year's issue in an ad for Swimsuits for All that features non-models for the very first time in the magazine's history. "I was so excited to shoot with local women for this shoot, non-models who represent all different body shapes, proving that everyone can look gorgeous in my swimsuits," Graham said in a press release. "We're continuing to shift perceptions of beauty and encouraging more inclusivity in the fashion industry."