Shop the ‘Baywatch’-Inspired Red Hot Scoop One-Piece Eileen Gu Wore in Florida

The Olympic freestyle skier was photographed by Ben Horton in Boca Raton this week for the 2025 SI Swimsuit issue.

Eileen Gu was photographed in Boca Raton., Fla. / Ben Horton/Sports Illustrated

Eileen Gu is set to make her mark in the 2025 SI Swimsuit issue and the first few images are already proving she’s got major it girl status. In 2022 the freestyle skier won two gold medals and one silver medal at the 2022 Games in Beijing, mastered the difficult and rarely-attempted double cork 1620 trick and became the Olympic champion in freestyle skiing.

But, she was already used to breaking records and making headlines for her talent. The San Francisco-born and raised athlete, who represents China at the elite level, became the first Chinese athlete to win a gold at the X Games and the first rookie to take home three medals at the event.

This week she traveled to Boca Raton, Fla. with photographer Ben Horton, for her photo shoot set to appear in the 2025 SI Swimsuit issue. We’re totally in awe of how powerful, stunning and confident the 21-year-old is in this red hot one-piece from Norma Kamali, that’s on sale now.

NORMA KAMALI Marissa swimsuit red, $60 (net-a-porter.com)

Eileen Gu was photographed by Ben Horton in Boca Raton, Fla. Swimsuit by Norma Kamali. / Ben Horton/Sports Illustrated

This sleek cherry red Baywatch-inspired suit features flattering high-leg and low-side scoop silhouettes, as well as a completely open back. Shop other styles at normakamali.com.

Represented by IMG models, Gu has already paved a path for herself in the fashion and modeling industries, having graced the cover of multiple Chinese editions of Vogue, Elle, Cosmopolitan, GQ and Harper’s Bazaar. She has also been featured in campaigns for Louis Vuitton and Tiffany & Co. and is sponsored by Red Bull and is a founding member of Victoria’s Secret’s VS Collective.

Today, she’s also pursuing her education and love for “bending the laws of what’s possible”—both on the slopes and in the classroom. Gu is a full-time student at Stanford University studying quantum physics.

“It’s a whirlwind, but in the best way possible. The fact that I do so many different things is what keeps it interesting. If I spent all the time I spend doing stuff in one aspect of my life, I would have already burnt out. What keeps me from getting bored is the juxtaposition of those different aspects of my life at the same time. It’s difficult to grow tired of one thing when you’re only doing it for an hour, and so when I’m at school, I’m excited to be there; I’m with my friends and in the classrooms, physically present. When I’m gone, I’m not thinking about school, because all of a sudden I’m upside down and don’t need to be learning my physics from a textbook; I’m living it in real life,” Gu shared about how she maintains her busy schedule and tries to stay fully present in each sphere of her life. “Fashion is expressive, fun, and creative. I’m meeting all of these incredible people and have the opportunity to express myself and my values in a way I don’t get to in other aspects of my life. All of these fantastic elements in my life fit together in this unique puzzle, and that is what keeps things interesting, not despite one another, but because of it.”

Learn more about Gu here, and check out some behind the scenes moments from her photo shoot here.