Paralympic Powerhouse Ali Truwit Is Redefining Beauty and Power in SI Swimsuit

The silver medalist makes her debut on the pages of SI Swimsuit for the 2025 issue.

Ali Truwit was destined for a life in a bathing suit and for SI Swimsuit. The inspirational swimmer, who received two silver medals during her first Paralympics in Paris 2024, marks her debut in the 2025 SI Swimsuit Issue. Photographed in Florida by Ben Horton at The Boca Raton, the 24-year-old’s personality shines through in the pages, proving why she has won the hearts of many, even Tom Cruise.

The night before her first big race in Paris, the 400-meter freestyle, she got the pep talk of all pep talks from the actor, she shares with SI Swimsuit. “He got on the phone and was like, ‘You worked so hard to get to this point. You’ve already achieved so much in and out of the water, and I encourage you to just go out there and enjoy it, relish in all of the support and all that you've already done and feel so proud of where you are,’’’ she recalls on set. “That was the exact message I needed in that moment, so I was so grateful for it. Then he invited me to his set after, which was also super cool.”

Truwit’s story really was an impossible mission, and before standing on that podium in Paris, it took blood, sweat and tears for the Connecticut native to get there. After graduating from Yale in 2023, she went on vacation to Turks and Caicos, where her life would change in an instant during a snorkeling excursion that resulted in her losing her lower left leg.

View Ali Truwit’s full 2025 SI Swimsuit gallery here.

“When the shark attack and amputation first happened, there was a lot of media interest in my story,” she says. “There was a lot of misinformation out there as a result of waiting eight months to share my story. I really wanted to correct the narrative that [close friend] Sophie [Pilkinton] and I saved ourselves. We fought a shark, we swam 70 yards, me footless and bleeding, back to a boat. We saved ourselves. That was such a healing thought to me, that I could take this bad thing that happened to me and use it for good.”

Just one month after her amputation, Truwit was back in the water doing what she loves most: swimming. Her earliest memories are in a pool; her parents put her and her three brothers in lessons from a young age, though they didn’t take a liking to it as much as she did and would lie that they completed their practices. Instead, Truwit would take all four swimming lessons.

Ali Truwit was photographed by Ben Horton at The Boca Raton. Swimsuit by Tropic of C. / Ben Horton/Sports Illustrated

“I love that I grew up in a swimsuit, and also it’s really hard to grow up in a swimsuit,” Trwuit admits. “As you’re going through those transitional years where your body changes, you become a little more focused on what your body looks like. I guess I was lucky in that sense, and I think it’s because the people that I surrounded myself with were people who celebrated what our bodies could do and how powerful and strong and beautiful we were.”

This is a large part of why she’s being featured in the 2025 issue. “To think that now, what, 17 months later, I am sitting here on the beach and at the pool posing in a swimsuit for Sports Illustrated Swimsuit is just a moment that gives me chills,” she adds. “I hope when people look at these photos as of the issue as a whole, I hope they see the power, strength and beauty in female athletes. I hope young girls look at these photos and see that all bodies are beautiful. Whether you’re an athlete or whatever you look like, there is strength and power and beauty within you, too.”