8 Photos of Legendary SI Swim Model Samantha Hoopes in Scrub Island
Samantha Hoopes has been featured in seven SI Swimsuit Issues over the years, starting with her debut in 2014, when she participated in a unique body paint feature with photographer Walter Iooss Jr. and artist Joanne Gair in St. Lucia. The 32-year-old model’s most recent feature with the brand was in ’20, when she traveled to Scrub Island, British Virgin Islands, alongside visual artist Josie Clough.
Hoopes, a proud mom of two, made a surprise appearance on the Miami Swim Week runway on Friday. She and fellow brand legends Carol Alt, Roshumba Williams, Vendela Kirsebom and Elsa Benitez closed out the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Runway Show at the W South Beach. She wore a custom statement-making crop top with a black monokini and a sparkly yellow bikini.
“My first year, I came in—I don’t like to use the word lost—but at 22, you’re still kind of finding yourself, figuring out what you like and don’t like,” Hoopes told SI Swimsuit while on location three years ago of her personal growth with the brand. “Seven years later, it’s a big difference. I’m a woman. I have a baby.”
In honor of Hoopes’s return to the SI Swimsuit runway on Friday, below you’ll find eight of our favorite photos from her 2020 feature in Scrub Island.