Nicole Williams English Honors Her Mother-in-Law With Breast Cancer Awareness Feature

The three-time SI Swimsuit model stars in our PINKTOBER campaign with Hard Rock International for Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Nicole Williams English was photographed by Katherine Goguen at the Hard Rock Hotel New York. / Katherine Goguen/Sports Illustrated

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. According to the National Breast Cancer Foundation, one in eight women in the U.S. will develop breast cancer in their lifetimes. Aside from skin cancer, breast cancer is the most common cancer among U.S. women. This October, SI Swimsuit is committed to providing resources for breast cancer patients while sharing the stories of warriors who have been impacted by the disease. For more information, click here.

Family is the center of SI Swimsuit model Nicole Williams English’s world. She and her husband, Larry, are the proud parents to daughter India Moon, whom they welcomed in January of 2023. That same year, Williams English was named our Rookie of the Year, following a breathtaking photoshoot in Dominica at seven months pregnant. The model and swimsuit designer has posed for each issue of the magazine since, and this October, she’s taking part in Hard Rock International’s PINKTOBER campaign in partnership with SI Swimsuit for Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

The campaign is personal to Williams English, who watched her mother-in-law, Susan, battle breast cancer after being diagnosed in 2021. The model supported Susan as she went through a double mastectomy and witnessed the emotional and physical turmoil her loved one faced firsthand.

Nicole Williams English was photographed by Katherine Goguen at the Hard Rock Hotel New York. / Katherine Goguen/Sports Illustrated

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“It was really, really eye-opening,” Williams English says of the experience. “And so when I heard that Sports Illustrated Swimsuit was doing this with the Hard Rock, the PINKTOBER campaign, I was like, immediately, yes, because I feel like it really hit home.” 

The experience of supporting her mother-in-law through her breast cancer journey gave Williams English a deeper understanding of the impact breast cancer makes not only on those who are diagnosed, but the families of patients, as well. With her participation in the PINKTOBER campaign, she hopes to bring awareness to the breast cancer, a disease that 13% of women in the U.S. will be diagnosed with in her lifetime.

Nicole Williams English was photographed by Katherine Goguen at the Hard Rock Hotel New York. / Katherine Goguen/Sports Illustrated

“We just want to celebrate women all over that have ever struggled with breast cancer, are going through it now or have beat it,” Williams English adds. “And you know, I just want to support [the cause].”

The 26th annual PINKTOBER campaign features a limited-edition retail collection of T-shirts, hoodies, pins, hats, tumblers and tote bags modeled by Williams English and fellow SI Swimsuit starsRoshumba Williams and Jasmine Sanders. Proceeds from the merchandise collection will benefit the Hard Rock Heals Foundation, a nonprofit founded in 2016 that aims to bring awareness to various causes through the power of music.

Nicole Williams English was photographed by Katherine Goguen at the Hard Rock Hotel New York. / Katherine Goguen/Sports Illustrated

With her participation in the PINKTOBER campaign, Williams English hopes to remind women facing breast cancer and survivors alike that they are never alone.

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