SI Swimsuit Models Are Throwing It Back to 2016—and We’re Totally on Board

Brand stars like Hailey Clauson and Emily DiDonato have hopped on the latest social media trend, and we’re obsessed with these glimpses into the past.

Hailey Clauson and Emily DiDonato were photographed by James Macari in Turks and Caicos / James Macari/Sports Illustrated

In case you’ve been offline the last several days, just about everyone with an Instagram account has been jumping in on the latest trend, which states that “2026 is the new 2016.”

Brand models past and present have been getting in on the action, and we’ve been absolutely loving the trip down memory lane—particularly because several of these fun and nostalgic carousels feature snapshots from that year’s SI Swimsuit Issue. The 2016 magazine featured three different cover models—including Hailey Clauson, Ashley Graham and Ronda Rousey—and we traveled across the globe to Zanzibar, Tahiti, Malta, the Dominican Republic, Petit Saint Vincent, the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos.

Below, check out a few of our favorite model Instagram moments of the week that feature a major blast from the past.

Hailey Clauson

Hailey Clauson was photographed by James Macari in Turks and Caicos. / James Macari/Sports Illustrated

Clauson, an SI Swimsuit legend, took a trip down memory lane, reflecting upon the year that “that changed my career, and the year I turned 21💕,” she wrote in her Jan. 14 IG caption. The model landed the cover of the SI Swimsuit issue just one year after her rookie feature when she was captured by James Macari in Turks and Caicos.

Other photos in her carousel included poses alongside designer Jeremy Scott, fellow model Ashley Smith, and Clauson’s now husband, Jullien Herrera.

Emily DiDonato

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DiDonato, a six-time SI Swimsuit model, joked “I fear I may have peaked in 2016” in her roundup, which included professional modeling shots, selfies and snaps with friends.

“2016 was your year and no one can tell me otherwise💋,” one of the model and mom’s 2.8 million followers commented. That year, DiDonato returned to the SI Swimsuit Issue for her fourth consecutive feature. She was photographed by James Macari in Turks and Caicos.

Hunter McGrady

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McGrady’s throwback featured her musing on “freedom over perfection” in her caption, while the carousel itself featured mirror selfies, red carpet pics, campaign images and several cute selfies alongside her now husband, Brian Keys. “The authenticity of 2016 is unmatched,” one of the model’s followers commented.

Now an SI Swimsuit legend, McGrady would go on to make her brand debut in 2017. She posed for a body paint feature in Anguilla.

Kate Love

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While reflecting on 2016, Love included a snapshot of her SI Swimsuit Issue photo shoot from Malta along with other magazine features, cute selfies and photos with her now husband, Kevin Love. A decade ago, Love posed for her fourth consecutive SI Swimsuit feature when she was photographed by Ben Watts in the European country.

“What a flex that your 2016 self is still a flex 😂,” one of Love’s 990,000 followers commented of her timelessness.

Genie Bouchard

Genie Bouchard was photographed by Emmanuelle Hauguel in Turks and Caicos. Swimsuit by Luli Fama. / Emmanuelle Hauguel/Sports Illustrated

Bouchard, a former professional tennis player, noted that 2016 featured “lots of bikinis, selfies, & one very bad decision (swipe to end).” Not only did the athlete pose for her Turks and Caicos feature that would be included in the following year’s SI Swimsuit Issue, she also spent much of her downtime in swimwear. She also opted to try out a trendy undercut and shave off a portion of her hair, which she included a snap of at the very end of her carousel.

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