Olivia Dunne Opens Up the SI Swimsuit Runway Show in Head-Turning Style and Moves

The content creator and 2025 SI Swimsuit cover girl made her debut on the brand’s runway.

Olivia Dunne at the 2025 SI Swimsuit Runway Show 2025 / John Parra/Getty Images for Sports Illustrated

2025 SI Swimsuit cover girl Olivia Dunne made a splash in Miami, Fla., for Swim Week. Despite posing for the magazine three consecutive years, 2025 marked her debut on the catwalk for the official SI Swimsuit Runway Show. Taking place at the W South Beach, the brand returned to the runway for another incredible show full of talented faces and fabulous swimwear items.

Dunne, who concluded her fifth and final year on the LSU Tigers women’s gymnastics team in April, is ready for her next era. Landing the cover of the 2025 SI Swimsuit Issue and walking the runway are definitely two ways she’s ushering in her life post-gymnastics, and her fans are so excited to keep cheering her on in her new endeavors.

For the runway show on Saturday, May 31, Dunne stunned in a collection of classic red, black and white looks—channeling retro vibes we can’t get enough of.

Olivia Dunne at the 2025 SI Swimsuit Runway Show 2025 / John Parra/Getty Images for Sports Illustrated

Dunne opened up the show in a show-stopping look. For this ensemble, she rocked a black and white zebra-printed bikini with a red band on top and bottom—which is reversible—along with an ultra-cropped red and white t-shirt with the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit logo on the front. Both items are from the SI Swimsuit x Oh Polly Capsule collection, now on sale.

Olivia Dunne at the SI Swimsuit Runway Show 2025 / Ivan Apfel/Getty Images

Dunne’s second look consisted of a black and white polka dot one-piece from Gabriela Pires Beachwear with trendy cut-outs around the stomach and waist, flaunting her impressive abs. The piece featured a circular silver ring above the belly button and added a serious pop of color with red ties on the top and bottom. And just because she’s done with collegiate athletics doesn’t mean she’s lost her gymnast skills—as seen in the impressive split she did on the runway.

The 22-year-old New Jersey native has transformed into an internet phenomenon since she started posting regularly on TikTok while pursuing her undergrad at LSU. Seemingly overnight, she amassed a huge, dedicated following, and while on the Tigers team, she became the most-followed college athlete and the highest-paid female college athlete through NIL deals.

In 2023, she launched The Livvy Fund, a program to help connect female LSU students with brands for endorsement deals. On her own résumé are collaborations with notable companies such as Purina, Bodyarmor, Crocs, Nautica and more.

Olivia Dunne was photographed by Ben Watts in Bermuda. Swimsuit by Reina Olga. / Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

We caught up with Dunne during launch week for the 2025 SI Swimsuit Issue, where she dished on her favorite swimwear trends for this summer. “Like my [SI Swimsuit] cover, I’m loving animal print and mix-matched animal prints,” she shared during the Social Club pop-up. “It never goes out of style, and it’s so fun and youthful.”

For the SI Swimsuit Runway Show, Dunne joined 15 other SI Swimsuit models, four new faces to the brand and six finalists of the 2025 Swim Search. Ahead of the event, we hosted other exciting events, including pop-ups, parties and more. Collaborating with our official partners, guests were treated to exclusive giveaways and experiences you could only get during Swim Week.

You can watch the SI Swimsuit Runway Show on YouTube now.