Q&A With SI Swimsuit Legend Megan Rapinoe

The retired soccer player and advocate returns to the fold in this year’s 60th anniversary issue.

Megan Rapinoe was photographed by Yu Tsai in Hollywood, Fla. Suit by Alice + Olivia. Shoes by Fendi. Jewelry by Melinda Maria and Charlie Lapson. / Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

Turning 60 has never looked so good. To celebrate the big milestone in style, Sports Illustrated Swimsuit called upon 27 “Legends”—women of all ages, sizes, tribes and backgrounds—who epitomize trailblazing influence and game-changing impact. 

From supermodel OGs who made their first splash on the magazine’s glossy pages in the 1970s and ’80s to stars newer to the SI Swimsuit sisterhood—the Legends symbolize diversity, inclusivity, empowerment and self-love.  

“The Legends hold the power to represent the collective us,” SI Swimsuit editor in chief MJ Day says. “Each one has played a significant role in the brand’s last 10 years, holding important conversations that have helped shift societal perceptions and led to incredible change for women.” 

The Legends had plenty to say in their one-on-one interviews, held during a three-day SI Swimsuit event at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla., where photo shoots for the 60th anniversary issue were underway amidst a flurry of glam teams, wardrobe stylists and veteran fashion lensmen. The Legends were unfiltered, funny, wise, compassionate, profound, and at times, searingly honest—proving that a woman’s inner beauty is her most important superpower of all.   

See more from the Legends photo shoot here.

Retired soccer player Megan Rapinoe first posed for the SI Swimsuit Issue in 2019, when she traveled to St. Lucia for a beachside feature with visual artist Ben Watts. She returns to the fold as a legend in this year’s 60th anniversary publication.

What does being an SI Swimsuit Legend mean to you?

“It’s really special. The lineup of women and the evolution of the cover of the Swimsuit Issue has become so much more representative of the women in it. For me, being gay and being able to represent in that way, and not just for myself but for others to see that, maybe makes someone more comfortable with themselves or opens up their aperture a bit more.”

Describe yourself in three words.

“I’m just me.”

Megan Rapinoe was photographed by Yu Tsai in Hollywood, Fla. Suit by Alice + Olivia. Shoes by Fendi. Jewelry by Melinda Maria. / Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

View Megan Rapinoe’s 2024 Legends photo gallery here.

What do you love most about being yourself?

“I love my sense of humor, and I love that I can use that to connect with people and make people feel comfortable. I love my sense of self and my self-confidence, not that I’m confident all the time. I certainly have moments just like everybody else. Probably my sense of humor is my favorite thing about me.”

What does empowerment mean to you?

“Empowerment is being able to be yourself and not trying to fit into what someone else prescribes for you or what the world prescribes for you, or showing up in a way that makes other people comfortable. 

“As women, we have so many restrictions, guardrails and opinions—ways that we’re meant to be that really have nothing to do with who we are; it’s more about other people. For me, being empowered is showing up exactly how I want and the way I want, and being able to bring my full self, no matter what, no matter where I am.”

Sue Bird and Megan Rapinoe were photographed by Yu Tsai in Hollywood, Fla. Sue’s suit by Alice + Olivia. Shoes by Nike. Jewelry by Charlie Lapson. Megan’s suit by Alice + Olivia. Shoes by Fendi. Jewelry by Melinda Maria and Charlie Lapson. / Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

What are you most excited about right now in your life?

“I’m thrilled to be retired after an amazing career. I played for a very long time, and it was incredible. As a little kid, being from where I’m from, if someone told me that this is what was gonna happen, I would say you’re f------ crazy.

“I can’t even believe I got to live that life. I loved it. But I’m so happy to be done. I’m excited to figure out this next chapter. I’m just so passionate about women’s sports and where it’s going. Women’s sports is special because it intersects with every single part of life, every single part of progress and equality, making our world a better place. I think women’s sports has an amazing opportunity to do something very special in the next five to 10 years, and beyond that.”