SI Swimsuit Legend Hailey Clauson Is a Neon Beach Babe in These 7 Pics From the Bahamas

The brand star was photographed by Ben Watts for her 2018 magazine feature.

Ananya Panchal | Sep 9, 2024

Hailey Clauson was photographed by Ben Watts in the Bahamas. / Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

SI Swimsuit legend Hailey Clauson has posed for the brand eight separate years, and she absolutely crushes it every time. It‘s simply impossible to pick our favorite feature of the 29-year-old’s. From her marvelous, nostalgic debut in Hawai’i and her sophomore cover photo shoot in Turks and Caicos to last year’s Barbie-inspired moment on the beaches of the Dominican Republic and this year’s feature for the 60th anniversary issue, she just has way too many flawless galleries to choose from.

“It’s pretty cool. I can’t believe now I’m a legend. It feels like I just shot my first year with the magazine. I was 19 the first year I shot for Sports Illustrated Swimsuit ... So it’s been a 10-year journey with the magazine. I’ve grown up with Sports Illustrated, and now I get to be in this room with all these women that I’ve admired, women that I’ve grown up with at the same time. It’s a very powerful moment,” she gushed while on location in Hollywood, Fla., this spring. “I’ve been modeling for 16 years now. For a long time, that was all I knew, all I did. And these last few years, I really ventured out into other avenues, exploring my creative side and my business side.”

Today, Clauson is the co-owner and creative director of boutique modeling agency Margaux the Agency. The Los Angeles native, who recently got engaged to longtime boyfriend Jullien Herrera, uses her platform and knowledge to ensure the safety and well-being of young women in the modeling industry.

Below, we’re throwing it back to Clauson’s 2018 SI Swimsuit feature in the Bahamas. She posed for photographer Ben Watts in the most dazzling, summer break-inspired series of colorful neon looks. Here are seven of our faves.