SI Swimsuit Model Lauren Chan Talks Journey of Self-Discovery

The two-time brand star posed for this year’s 60th anniversary issue in Mexico.

Lauren Chan was photographed by Yu Tsai in Mexico. / Yu Tsai/Sports illustrated

When Lauren Chan posed for her rookie photo shoot in the Dominican Republic for last year’s SI Swimsuit Issue, the Canadian model was experiencing significant change in her life. Now, a year later, Chan is happier—and living more authentically—than ever.

“I have been making such distinct efforts to discover myself, know myself, like myself, and then be myself over the past few years,” Chan told us of her evolution while on the red carpet at the magazine’s 60th anniversary launch event in New York City on May 16. “And I feel like I’ve arrived and I’m so glad it resonates because I want it to inspire other people to go on that journey [of self-discovery] as well.”

Lauren Chan was photographed by Yu Tsai in Mexico. Swimsuit by Heidi Fish Swimwear. Earrings by AGMES. / Yu Tsai/Sports Illustrated

She also shared that her photo shoot for the 2024 SI Swimsuit Issue in Mexico with Yu Tsai was not only fun, but an incredibly transformative experience.

“I think it healed a small part of me,” Chan stated of her time on location in Cancún. “It healed the teenage self that watched America’s Next Top Model and size-inclusion wasn’t a thing yet. It healed the Asian part of me that didn’t ever feel beautiful amongst the very white beauty standard ... I’m speechless because it was it was genuinely healing.”

Following the publication’s launch events in New York and Florida, Chan took to Instagram to express how she chose to embrace her authentic self during the weekend-long series of events by making intentional fashion choices that were “joyful and unaffected by what everyone else is doing.”