Tanaye White and Kathy Jacobs are the First Rookies of SI Swimsuit 2021

10,000 submissions. Six finalists. Two winners.

We’ve spent the last year searching for the next SI Swim Search star and, as it turns out, we couldn’t pick just one. Out of thousands of submissions, Tanaye White and Kathy Jacobs are the winners of the third annual #SISwimSearch open casting call. Both will return as rookies in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit 2021 issue! These women represent the power of persistence and what it means to follow your dreams.

“We are thrilled to welcome these incredible women into our family,” says SI Swimsuit editor-in-chief MJ Day. “Both of these women collectively represent what Swim Search stands for: an inclusive and empowered place for individuals to be seen and be heard.”

Tanaye is no newbie to the Swim Search process. She initially came to our attention in July of 2018 at our Miami casting event alongside last year’s winner, Brooks Nader. The Annapolis native made it into the Swim Search Sweet 16 where she walked in our Miami Swim Week fashion show and shot for popular swimwear brand, FAE, but unfortunately did not make it to the final round. Hearing no didn’t stop her. Tanaye came back in full force for #SISwimSearch2020, ready to show the SI Swimsuit team that she was made for this -- and trust us, she is.

“Tanaye brings so much value to our team and has shown such tenacity in achieving her goals.” says Day.

The Georgetown graduate landed a job at one of the top defense and aerospace agencies in the world, but in November of 2019, she decided to quit her 9-to-5 to pursue a career in modeling. Tanaye landed a contract with one of New York City’s top agencies, Wilhelmina, and has been living out her dreams ever since.

Click here to get to know Tanaye more!

Kathy Jacobs stole our hearts with her outspoken personality, her determination to change industry standards around age, and her drive to show the world that 56 has never looked so good. The Calabasas, Calif. mom met us down in Miami in July 2019 after being chosen out of thousands of video submissions. The SI Swimsuit team was blown away and picked Kathy to join 16 other incredible women in making their Miami Swim Week debut. The roar of the crowd when Kathy stepped out on the runway was an unforgettable moment -- we knew then that she was a star.

“Kathy unapologetically shows the world who she is and stands behind everything she believes in,” Day says. “We love her for that.”

Jacobs has quite a career under her belt, having been featured in Miley Cyrus and Green Day music videos and major campaigns with ThirdLove and Beauty Blender. Kathy continues to break barriers and prove that beauty only gets better with age.

Click here to get to know Kathy more!

Tanaye and Kathy join the ranks of fellow model search winners Brooks Nader, Haley Kalil, Camille Kostek, Anne de Paula, Mia Kang and Jessica Perez. Want to see more of your newest rookies? Check out their pages below!

See more Tanaye White!

See more Kathy Jacobs!