SI Swimsuit 2026 has spent this year quietly rewriting what its pages look like.

The issue features 34 women across sport, entertainment, business and social media. The team shot them everywhere from Botswana to Mexico’s Baja California coast.

As the magazine’s editor put it, the whole point was to avoid sameness.

With South Africa’s own summer just months away, these five SI Swimsuit 2026 moments double as genuine inspo. Better still, they work as a proper confidence boost for anyone dreading beach season.

Remi Bader’s SI Swimsuit 2026 rookie debut

Content creator and body-image advocate Remi Bader made her first-ever print appearance in the issue.

SI Swimsuit photographed her in Montauk, New York. In her caption announcing the shoot, Bader opened up about how emotional the moment felt for her personally.

As a result, the response was immediate, with fellow models and famous friends flooding the comments to celebrate her confidence and the milestone itself.

Remi Bader’s SI Swimsuit debut was the perfect pop of color 🎨 See more here: https://t.co/tSXZXXMWBj pic.twitter.com/Yvll37NaFm

— Sports Illustrated Swimsuit (@SI_Swimsuit) August 13, 2026
Ilona Maher’s third shoot, and her stance on body criticism

Olympic rugby bronze medallist Ilona Maher returned for her third SI Swimsuit feature on the sands of Loreto, Mexico. Off the page, Maher has spent much of 2026 pushing back against unrealistic beauty standards on social media.

She’s repeatedly reminded followers that not everyone is built to be small, and that existing in a bigger body needs no justification.

When online critics called her swimsuit look “unflattering” earlier this year, she summed it up simply: “If you got a body, you got a bikini body.”

Molly Sims proving swimwear doesn’t have an age limit

Molly Sims was a fixture of the SI Swimsuit pages in the early 2000s. Now 52, she returned to swimwear for the brand for the first time since 2006.

In her caption, she reflected on the milestone, saying she wished she could tell her 20-something self that she’d “still be here at 52, feeling more beautiful and confident” than ever.

Jocelyn Corona’s plus-size representation, front and centre

Scouts discovered model Jocelyn Corona in Mexico City at just 16, and she’s since built a career on body diversity.

In fact, she’s represented plus-size models on the runway at New York Fashion Week multiple times. Her SI Swimsuit debut in Loreto continued that same mission on a much bigger stage.

Jocelyn Corona’s vacation pics have the same energy as her SI Swimsuit debut 🏖️ More here: https://t.co/jd0cdXujpg pic.twitter.com/9z8l7Mnbke

— Sports Illustrated Swimsuit (@SI_Swimsuit) August 17, 2026
SI Swimsuit 2026’s Lizzo cover moment

Lizzo became SI Swimsuit’s July 2026 digital cover star, shot by Robin Harper in Miami wearing pieces from her own size-inclusive swimwear line, Yitty Swim. The moment came just weeks after she performed at the brand’s Swim Week runway show, where she walked in a bold blue one-piece with “B-tch” written across the front.

Reflecting on the milestone, Lizzo told SI Swimsuit, “I was genuinely excited. I was like, ‘Wow, I kind of manifested this.'” She also opened up about what the cover meant looking back at the magazine she grew up reading: “I never imagined somebody with my body type would be on it.”

With our own festive season on the horizon, there’s something freeing about heading into beach season without the pressure to look a certain way first. Honestly, this will definitely be my go-to style and confidence guide this festive season.

Which SI Swimsuit 2026 moment gave you the biggest confidence boost?

Keep following our coverage for more of the celebrity style moments worth talking about this summer.