Brand Legend Kate Love Returns to SI Swimsuit for Her 11th Year

The model was photographed for the 60th anniversary issue by Yu Tsai in Hollywood, Fla.

Cara O’Bleness | May 18, 2024

Kate Love was photographed by Yu Tsai in Legends Hollywood, Fla. / Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

Kate Love first posed for the SI Swimsuit Issue in 2013, when her photo shoot in Chile earned her Rookie of the Year honors. She’s returned to the fold on numerous occasions since, including the cover of the magazine in 2020, following her photo shoot in Bali. With the publication of the 2024 SI Swimsuit Issue, Love returns to the fold for her 11th year as a brand legend.

“It feels kind of crazy. I still can’t believe that I was chosen to be in the issue and then got the call back every year for a decade,” Love stated of her history with the brand. “Being a swimsuit model and now returning as a legend for an 11th year has been such a big part of my life. It’s cool and exciting to know that some people look up to me the way I looked up to other women.”

Prior to this year’s feature, Love most recently posed for the 2022 SI Swimsuit Issue, when she was photographed by Yu Tsai in Belize. Outside of modeling, the 36-year-old is a mother and wife who uses her platform to raise awareness for charitable initiatives like national nonprofit Wellness in the Schools.

During her photo shoot among fellow brand legends at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla., earlier this spring, Love shared her hopes for a future that focuses on empowering other women.

“If we create a society where encouraging and being positive toward other women and men is seen as a strength, then people will follow along,” she stated. “It sort of seems like we’re in a weird place where there’s a lot of tearing each other down. I don’t know why. If we switched this and became encouraging and positive to others, I wonder what we could accomplish.”

Below are a few of our favorite photos from her legendary feature in this year’s SI Swimsuit Issue.

Kate Love was photographed by Yu Tsai in Hollywood, Fla. Dress by Donna Karen. Shoes by Giuseppe Zanotti. Jewelry by Melinda Maria and Charlie Lapson. / Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

Published May 18, 2024

CARA O’BLENESS

Cara O’Bleness is a writer and editor on the Lifestyle and Trending News team for SI Swimsuit. Prior to joining SI Swimsuit in 2022, she worked as a writer and editor across a number of content verticals, including food, lifestyle, health and wellness, and small business and entrepreneurship. In her free time, O’Bleness loves reading, spending time with her family and making her way through Michigan’s many microbreweries. She is a graduate of Michigan State University’s School of Journalism.