Megan Rapinoe Flaunted Her Athleticism on SI Swim Set in St. Lucia

The brand legend first posed for the annual issue in 2019.

Megan Rapinoe was photographed by Ben Watts in St. Lucia. / Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

Retired athlete Megan Rapinoe first posed for the SI Swimsuit Issue in 2019, when she traveled to St. Lucia alongside several of her USWNT teammates, including Alex Morgan, Crystal Dunn and Abby Dahlkemper. That year, the USWNT won the 2019 Women’s World Cup championship.

Five years later, Rapinoe cemented herself as an SI Swimsuit legend, and landed on the cover of the 60th anniversary issue following a group photo shoot in Hollywood, Fla., with visual artist Yu Tsai. And though the 38-year-old California native had retired from her sport when she set foot on the set of her second brand photo shoot, one thing remained the same: Rapinoe’s wisdom where empowerment is concerned and her desire to share it with others.

“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,” she stated while on location earlier this spring. “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.”

Below, we’re throwing it back to a few of our favorite photographs from Rapinoe’s 2019 SI Swimsuit feature, in which she showed off her athleticism on the beaches of St. Lucia.

Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated